A Pearl of Great Price
by Shygui
Summary: An incident at the Yule Ball, results in the rescue of a maiden fair. It was impossible for them to imagine that the resulting ripples from this event would impact so heavily on their lives and all those in the magical world.
1. Part 1 - The Incident

**AN - Whilst I have been getting the kudos from Dorothea Greengrass with regards to helping her with her most excellent story "A Marriage of Convenience" (something you should all check out by the way), she has been just as dedicated and helpful to me with this idea. Without her thoughtfulness, wit and carefully considered questions, this story would be so much less than it is. So thank you Dorothea, You Rock as well.**

 **A Pearl of Great Price**

 **Part 1 – The Incident**

She woke again, covered in a cold sweat and shivering. It had been like this since the night of what she still called the incident. It was, she thought, the best and worst four hours of her life, and every year around the anniversary she would wake, heart pounding, as what if scenarios played with her mind; and always the worst one was: what if he hadn't heard her?

In the end, thirty seconds had changed her life. Had he stepped away any earlier, stopped trying to discover the distressed call he thought he had heard, she would have had a much sorrier tale to tell, and who knew what would have happened to her future or whether she would have had one at all.

Slowly bringing her ragged breathing under control, she felt her heart rate drop back to a more normal beat. She rolled over to her other side facing her lover, watching his calm face as he continued his slumber, unaware of the panic and terror she had been experiencing barely seconds before.

After several moments she lay her head on his chest and listened to the slow rhythmic beat of his heart, revelling as his arm encircled her waist, drawing her nearer to him and calming her further.

The darkness that had encompassed the bed lightened slightly as a piece of clever magic that he had enchanted the curtains with simulated pale moonlight washing over them if one of them was awake. But she saw nothing as her eyes stared unseeing at the closed curtains around his bed as she allowed herself to think of that night that had changed her life in ways she couldn't have imagined.

The Yule Ball of her fourth year should have been a joyous occasion; her first ball out from under the ever watchful eyes of her parents. She had been attending the societal balls with her family since the age of thirteen, when all girls of certain breeding were first introduced to society at large.

She fingered the single pearl at her throat, her mæġdenhād gift, presented to her by her father at her very first ball. This particular one had adorned the necks of six different girls of six different families, passed from father to daughter via each mother on its way through time.

Her sister wore a similar, though significantly older one, an heirloom from their father's mother who had no daughters to gift it to. She recalled feeling ever so proud as she watched her sister and three other girls with similar birthdays have theirs bestowed on them by their beaming fathers, virtually eighteen months to the day after her own presentation. Those gifts, like her own, would remain at each of their throats, until they were formally conferred to their own husbands on their wedding night, as custom dictated.

She tilted her head back so that she could see him once more, if she had any say in the matter it would be him and only him that she would consider. Her parents she knew would not gainsay her on this, not after the way the events of the past three years had unfolded, they would support her to the hilt, the only issue would be her Grandfather.

Her eyes drifted back to the curtains as her mind continued to replay the memories of that night. Her hand clenched tighter around the pearl; it had been torn from her neck that night, but he had found it and saved it, just as he had saved her.

She had been stupid and naïve. She had trusted that her privileged background and who her father was would protect her from exactly what had happened, but her happy sheltered life had been smashed that evening, and still three years on she suffered in this small way because of it.

She had been ecstatic when the tall and aristocratically handsome sixth year from Durmstrang had asked her to go to the ball; she knew that she wouldn't even consider going with any of her male year mates from her house, and given that she was in green and silver it was highly unlikely that anyone else from her classes would ask her.

She had seen him watching her occasionally in the great hall over meals and in the library, when they were both there studying after classes. And so, when Nayden had asked her, she couldn't hold back her excitement and had immediately consented to be escorted by him, before rushing back to the dorms to gush to the other girls about her handsome date.

She had been a bubbling mess for the next ten days as she and her friends had made their plans regarding gowns or robes, what shoes and jewellery to wear and how to do their makeup and hair. A tear slid slowly down her face as she remembered her youthful and immature fantasies that made up those days before that night.

She remembered her own dress of a simple yet elegant A Line Emperor of green silk with its thin halter neck, lifting her developing bust, accentuating her thin waist and already long legs.

The silk started as a dark, almost black forest green on the halter and slowly faded as the dress flowed down until it finally became transparent at her knees, stopping a bare inch above the floor, leaving her long calves and shoes visible. Each of her arms had affixed at bust level a piece of the same material as though she wore streamers which terminated at her knee if her arms were down.

It had started so well; Nayden along with one of his schoolmates, who escorted one of the Slytherin sixth year girls, had arrived promptly outside of their dorm entrance at the appointed time of a quarter to eight.

This allowed them to have a leisurely walk from the dungeons to the great hall, and gave them long enough to arrive on time without having to rush to do so. He had been a doting escort and had praised her dress and beauty on several occasions during that walk.

She remembered that she had been floating with the clouds at his attention, and it was only with the opportunity of hindsight that she could see how his many platitudes were nothing but hot air. She had flushed slightly as he had whispered in her ear and held her close as he escorted her to a table of other Durmstrang students and their dates.

Of the fourteen seated at their table for dinner, she had been the only Hogwarts student, but there had also been three French students, two girls and a boy, all at least in their sixth years, and she had spent her time conversing with Nayden in his broken English and the girl Monique to her side with her own fluent French.

He was a wonderful dancer, as she knew he would be, and for the first two and a half hours her first solo ball had been breathtaking. Nayden had been attentive and generous with his time, going and getting her drinks from the refreshment bar, even managing to sneak her a small glass of the sweet winter wine the second time that they had stopped dancing.

Potentially that was where the trouble had started. Over the next twenty or thirty minutes her head had become cloudy, and she was slightly unsteady on her feet.

 _'Vat about valk outside?' Nayden suggested. 'Maybe the vine vasn't good idea.'_

Had he slipped some sort of Confundus Potion into one of her drinks? She'd never know; later tests weren't conclusive either way.

At the time though her guard had been down, and she had giggled at his suggestion, but made no protest to stop him as he led her outside and down into the Winter Garden.

She sighed, blinking back fresh tears as the memories came hard and fast to her now. He had led her to the very rear of the garden and sat her on a bench.

 _He pulled his wand from the pocket of his stylish robes, waved it about them and cast a series of spells in a language she didn't understand. As he put his wand back in his pocket, he said, 'I put up varming charms. It vould be shame to let beautiful girl go cold.'_

That should have caught her attention, but it didn't, and as she later reviewed the incident in a Pensieve, she severely berated herself for not putting the clues together sooner. With a clear head and time it was easy to remember it had been well advertised that the outside areas would be covered by a charm cast by Professor Flitwick. The charm would ensure that the Winter Garden and the outdoor seating stayed at an enjoyable temperature for all, but allowed for some snow to dust the paths and byways.

Later during the investigation it was determined by the Aurors that he had actually cast a variant of the wizarding Notice-Me-Not-Charm that caused anyone who looked into that corner to not only not see them, but to simply forget that they had been touched by a charm.

The Senior Auror had also determined that he had cast a minor Compliance Charm on her; given her confused state at the time, the Auror said that it was understandable that she didn't feel its touch as it settled over her.

Her memories flashed again, and she buried her head against her lover's chest as if to seek shelter.

 _Suddenly Nayden's mouth was on hers, hard and insistent. His tongue tasted bitter from alcohol, as it forced its way into her mouth. The smell of his cologne was sweet and cloying as it assaulted her nose._

 _What was he doing? This wasn't right ... was it? She hadn't given him permission to kiss her ...had she? She tried pushing him away, but her body didn't respond to the command of her brain._

 _The kiss went on and on, his tongue was violating her mouth, making her want to gag at the acidic and sour taste that he deposited on her tongue. She had never been kissed before, but she was pretty sure that this wasn't the way it was supposed to be. She shuddered involuntarily._

 _'Not vorry honey, I vill varm you up.'_

She'd never forget these words, full of smug self-satisfaction, they burned their way into her psyche and would haunt her forever.

She closed her eyes again, willing the next part of the memory not to play, but it was of no use, her mind would not obey her, and she gave an involuntary shudder, but felt her lovers arm flex and hold her tighter, as her recollection of events took her to the worst moment of her short life.

 _Nayden's hand ghosted down her neck and danced along her collarbone, then suddenly he was back to kissing her. She still hadn't moved. Her mind felt like it was covered in a thick mist. A small part was yelling at her to function; move, do something, anything!_

 _In desperation she concentrated on that section of her mind, and slowly the fog gave way, and became less dense. She needed to protect herself against whatever that fog was! It was foreign and wrong and she needed it gone._

 _Her Occlumency shields were down and she tried pushing them back into place, they moved but were painfully slow in responding, not at all what she was used to. Her pulse thumped in her ears as she began to panic, no matter what she did, no matter how she pushed, she couldn't get them to stay in place. What the hell was wrong with her? Why couldn't she control her body?_

She tried burrowing her way further into her lovers chest, he accommodated her rolling to his side and engulfed her in an embrace that drew her closer to his upper body. Her heart was thundering and she felt sure that she would wake him with the noise that it was making, as her memories continued to bombard her.

 _His hand slipped into the top of her bodice. Cold clammy fingers tightened around her breast and squashed it, rolling it from finger to finger. Why was he doing this to her? Had she done something to deserve this? His hand pushed deeper into her dress. The fabric of the halter tore from its attachment point, the noise sounding loud and harsh to her ears. His fingers gave her nipple a rough squeeze, shooting a bolt of pain through her._

She pulled herself closer to her lover, feeling his chest hair scrape against her nipples as she shifted. When Daphne had first got her menses she had rejoiced, knowing that she was joining her mother in womanhood. But the pain from those first cramps, the bloated feeling and the irritability that accompanied this rite of passage were all things that she could have happily given up.

A wry smile crossed her lips. Having said that, the jury was decidedly still out regarding the hypersensitivity in her nipples. Over the last few years she had found some very distinct advantages to **_that_** situation.

As her cycle peaked, her nipples would and could either damn her with pain or delight her with pleasure. She had discovered this completely by accident when she had worn her first silk pyjama top to bed a year later. The silk had ghosted over her breasts and rubbed her nipples in just the right way to drive her slightly crazy.

She would be forever grateful in the days following the incident for this side effect of her cycle, as it was the pain from that mauled, sensitive nipple that kicked her brain into gear, finally allowing her some traction to fight back.

 _The pain blew through the fog like a hurricane. She slammed her Occlumency Shields into place, taking stock of her body as she felt it begin to respond to her instruction again. Ever so slowly she readied herself, she knew that she would only get one chance to attempt escape._

 _She mentally cursed herself, why had she left her wand in her room? She'd never thought that tonight of all nights she would need it. She gently kicked off her silver, slingback heels, ensuring that they made no sound as they were deposited on the ground._

 _His hand groped her harder and more insistently, causing her to inadvertently moan in pain, resulting in a repeat performance. Did the jerk honestly think that she was getting some sort of pleasure out of his constant pawing of her breast? Obviously._

 _What had her mother told her at the start of the year? If ever a boy gives you trouble muffin, don't hesitate, go straight for where it will hurt him most. Give him a swift kick between his legs with either a knee or a fist, and then get out of there as fast as you can!_

 _If ever there was a situation that her mother had been talking about it was now. She steeled herself. She moved her arm back gently. Her fist clenched. She swung it down, driving hard with her shoulder._

 _She hit the inside of his leg on the way through, but her momentum was sufficient that her fist connected with his family jewels hard, causing him to buckle in half. It forced the air from his lungs and pulled his hand from her breast. Unfortunately, however, that movement ripped more of her dress, leaving her boob exposed to the cool night air._

 _She pushed off him and started running; a fumbling hand reached for her, but only succeeded in finding her necklace. It pulled tight against her throat before breaking. She pumped her legs as hard as she could along the snowy path._

 _As she slowed slightly and tried to turn she felt her right foot give way from under her and she slipped to the ground jarring her knees before sliding and hitting the wall with her shoulder. The slide tore her dress further and scraped some of the skin from her hands and knees._

 _A spell fizzled past her head and splashed against the wall. It would have hit her, if she had actually managed to remain standing and round the corner. She scrambled back to her feet and fled along the path before he had time to line up his next cast._

 _She dodged through the hedgerows and colonnades, desperately trying to find her way back to the castle and safety. Her feet had become ripped and cut, the nail on her left big toe gone, but she had no choice, other than to keep up her frantic pace as she left bloody footprints in the snow for him to follow._

It was only later, after the memory had been reviewed by two female Aurors from the DMLE, that she learnt that she had run for two minutes before she gave up trying to maintain her dignity by holding up the tattered bust of her dress, to instead focus on running using both her arms to drive her forward.

The Senior Auror, Connie Hammer, said that the scene reminded her of descriptions she had read in school, depicting the ancient amazon women of yore. Single breast bared, hair streaming out behind her as she ran, bloodied but not broken, and a singular focus on her face.

 _'You should be proud of yourself,' Connie had told her. 'You fought back! You didn't go quietly into the night! You didn't lose yourself to your fears, you fought back and you won! You bought yourself enough time to survive! You young lady are a warrior and don't you let anyone tell you differently._

Her memories still flashed through her mind, and as hard as she tried, she couldn't control them. She desperately wanted him to wake and to hold her close, kiss her and take the memories away like he always did. But she would not wake him, not deliberately at any rate, he had come back after his quick trip to the continent dirty and exhausted. He needed his sleep so she had slipped him a little sleeping draught to help him fall asleep and left herself to suffer in silence and alone.

 _She felt like she had been running for hours. She knew that she hadn't, but her lungs were burning, her pulse was racing in her ears, and her mouth was dry, making her breathing even more ragged in the cold night air._

 _Occasionally, spells would fizzle past her as she moved her way through the garden. He was gaining on her, and she knew that she was just about spent. Her legs were beginning to feel heavy, and her energy was being sapped fast by the pain in her feet, but she knew she had to keep going, keep pushing._

 _More spells splashed against the walls and pillars of the garden somehow missing her but causing her breath to hitch every time another hissed past her. Twice tripping jinxes had brushed her heels as she turned a corner, making her stumble, but somehow she had maintained her footing and continued running._

 _A Langlock Curse clipped her shoulder just as she had started to cry for help. She felt tears wash down her cheeks as her voice was muted to a whisper, and a cold feeling spread through her body, almost paralysing her. Now she really had to find help rather than calling for it and hoping someone would hear her._

She lifted her gaze to her lover's relaxed face and felt a wet smile form on her lips. Her fingers moved to his cheek on their own accord and she stroked the smooth, freshly shaven skin from his evening shower. He subconsciously nuzzled her hand; something he always did when awake and her heart overflowed with the love she felt for the man who held her in his arms.

He told her later that it was her scream of 'HEL' that had caught his attention, there had been no-one else near him and so he had moved deeper into the Winter Garden to investigate the panicked sound. He had thought that his mind was playing tricks on him when no other words reached him and he had been about to walk back to the castle when he had heard something break.

She remembered that moment well; it was the darkest point of the whole incident, when she felt that all hope had gone. In an instant her mind took her there and she could see it happening before her eyes.

 _She pushed herself around another corner, but a tripping hex caught her squarely on her legs, she fell sideways, panicked and slid on her side through the snow and ice. Her back collided with a pedestal and she looked up to see a vase of winter roses._

 _It was over! He had caught her, she had nothing left, she was spent, her feet were balls of hot white pain. Tears streamed from her eyes and her feet bled into the snow, around her the crisp white snowflakes were already turning pink as her blood mixed with them and made a slushy mess._

 _She wasn't sure if she believed in the gods, she had never really seen evidence of their existence, but she hoped that whoever was out there heard her prayer as she lay on her back and looked up at the winter sky. Then, as if the world slowed around her, she saw the vase topple, spilling sideways and fall to the ground smashing in a loud crash near her feet._

 _Nayden had almost reached her and was swearing to himself in his native language when the smashing sound from the vase caused him to freeze. His face contorted in rage, and she knew that whatever happened from here, it would be ten times worse than if she had just stayed and endured his treatment from before._

 _Nayden closed the last few paces that now separated them, 'Silly girl, silly girl, why run? Ve vere having good time …yes?' The sneer on his handsome face turned it decidedly ugly._

 _Her breath caught in her mouth as she heard it; the crackling of ice being trod on as someone stepped along a snowy pathway. She tilted her head back and looked along the path she had been about to run down and she saw him. A small shape, at the end of the path, some twenty meters away, his cloak hood up and silhouetted by the rising half-moon._

 _Nayden turned when he saw her eyes widen and looked along the same path, stiffening as he saw the shape of a boy at the end of it. He turned his attention back to her and with a flick of his wrist she was tied up like a calf with only her head freely able to move so that she could watch._

 _Nayden's focus shifted back to the figure at the end of the path. 'Should not have come, small boy,' Nayden barked at him. She saw him gripping his wand tighter and crouching slightly lower. 'Now I has two messes to clean.'_

 _The figure dropped into his own relaxed crouch. 'Let …Her …Go,' he growled, she was surprised at the venom clearly evident in his voice. She knew that voice, the identity of its owner tickled her subconscious, but his name would not come to her._

 _The malice in the small statement had obviously surprised Nayden too, as she saw him flinch ever so faintly. Nayden rolled his shoulders, and her eyes widened as he swirled his wand around his head before jamming it towards the ground between him and his opponent, 'A muffling ward,' she tried to yell to the stranger as she recognised the spell for what it was, but her voice was only just above a whisper._

 _'I think…' Nayden started. His arm moved and he cast a Stunner towards the shadow, and she prayed that whoever the stranger was that he wouldn't be caught off guard._

 _He didn't disappoint her; the shadow leaned left, and the spell buzzed past his right shoulder, surprising her with the calm manner in which he shifted to deal with the hostile spell. Nayden too was shocked as he had already started to lower his wand in anticipation of an easy victory._

 _With a snarl Nayden cast two more Stunners at the shadow. This time the figure moved right, dodging the first spell before an almost opaque Protego Shield fell into place in front of him, easily absorbing the second spell before it flickered out, and the figure resumed his casual stance, silently mocking Nayden's efforts._

 _Nayden snarled furiously and started casting spell after spell down the path. But the figure at the end of the path just moved, dodged, and set shield charms when he couldn't get out of the way, fluidly protecting himself from the barrage of spells that the Durmstrang student cast in his direction._

 _Five minutes later, and still the volley of spells was all one way traffic as Nayden grew increasingly frustrated and expelled a significant amount of magical power in his attempt to breach the defence of the other individual._

 _Hope found some purchase within her heart once more as she watched the shadowy figure deal with everything Nayden dared to throw at him, his muffling charm would only hide so much and she knew now that he couldn't afford to be noticed again by someone older and more experienced._

 _The bitter cold had leached into her bones after lying in the snow for what she estimated had to have been at least fifteen minutes. Nayden was breathing hard and swearing at himself in his native tongue. Sweat beaded on his forehead and his wand movements were getting sloppier as he cast._

 _She almost voiced a cheer when finally Nayden stopped firing spells, his wand held limply in his hand. He yelled a stream of vitriol at the shadowy figure who seemed to be taunting him by his mere silent presence._

 _She found herself relaxing slowly. Whoever her rescuer was, he was definitely competent, given his defensive duelling display up to this point in time. The half-moon peaked over his right shoulder as he stood still at the end of the path, barely breathing hard at all._

 _'My turn.' Again, there was a hint of barely suppressed rage in the voice, and still she couldn't identify him. Energy sparked and bled off him and then he gave voice to a single word: 'Stupefy!' He did not shout or gesture dramatically; his wand rolled fluently in his hand, and a beam of red light flashed from his wand._

 _The glow from the spell lit his face for an instant, she thought she saw a flash of reflected light from a pair of glasses, before the spell streaked away from his wand and towards Nayden and herself, leaving the stranger cloaked in shadow once more._

 _The spell suffused the pathway, Nayden and her in red light as it sped closer, it wasn't the usual crimson red ball the size of a small watermelon like most stunning spells she had seen. This was a deep blood red flash, angry, crackling with magical power and easily half a metre in diameter._

 _The bolt of magic flew down the path, and she saw Nayden cast a shield in front of himself and brace his legs for the impact. The spell crashed into Nayden's shield and rolled through his defence as if the barrier Nayden had erected was made of wet parchment. Then it thumped into the Durmstrang student lifting him off his feet and throwing him bodily into the wall at her feet, unconscious._

 _For the first time in the past twenty minutes she felt herself relax. Her saviour stepped towards her and quietly uttered, 'Finite!' The ropes that held her disappeared._

 _She scrambled to her feet, wincing as she did so. She wasn't quite sure when she found herself in his arms, but one moment she was standing there on her own, the next she was collapsing forwards, only to be caught and held gently in thin, but strong arms._

 _His eyes met hers, and she gasped in recognition. Only one boy at Hogwarts had burning emerald eyes behind wire framed glasses. She went to speak when he cut her off. 'Relax, you're safe now; I won't hurt you.' Obviously he mistook her gasp of surprise as one of fear. She could only nod to his assertion, knowing all too well that whatever Harry Potter was, he would not cause her further harm deliberately._

 _She saw his eyes widen as he looked down her body, taking in her injuries, and she belatedly recalled that her dress was ripped and one of her breasts was exposed. She scrambled, trying to grab the bodice of her dress, but her fingers were clumsy and shaking and she couldn't maintain her grip on the offending piece of material._

 _She felt tears of shame and embarrassment prick at her eyes; this was not how a boy was supposed to see her naked breast for the first time. When she finally looked back up at him in defeat, a blush rising on her face and neck, she saw that his eyes were closed tightly, and he was looking away from her as he fumbled with the clasp of his cloak._

 _She doubted that she would ever be able to describe the feelings that washed over her in that moment, but as he wrapped the black cloth around her, the simple gesture giving her back her dignity, she felt the tears of gratitude splash down her cheeks._

 _She felt him shift her slightly in his arms, still holding her tightly to his chest. In her bare feet with her knees bent slightly she was only fractionally shorter than him, so she estimated his height to be around that of her own at almost five foot four inches._

 _Turning her head, she watched as he muttered 'Incarcerous!' Nayden was bound up like a Sunday pork roast. He levitated Nayden's wand towards them, ended the spell and snatched it out of the air. No wonder he was a seeker: his movements were fast and sure. Pocketing Nayden's wand along with his own his attention was suddenly on her._

 _'Do you think you can walk?' he asked, looking slightly down at her with concern, somehow she found herself trying to burrow her way into his skinny chest._

 _'Maybe,' she replied in a voice that surprised her with its volume. Obviously his Finite had dispelled more than the ropes. He moved away from her slightly and suddenly she missed his warmth. Tentatively she took a step and immediately cried out in pain as she tried to place her weight on just one of her injured feet._

 _The pain had her nearly collapsing again and only Harry's quick embrace saved her from face planting, as her hands were still clutching his cloak tightly around her body. When she looked at him once more the concern on his face was evident._

 _'I think we will take that as a no,' he said, anxiety clearly apparent in his voice. 'I will carry you if that's alright, we don't have too far to go and I don't want to levitate you in case I get distracted and accidently cancel the spell.'_

 _She was about to nod her consent when a thought came to her. 'Can you cast a Featherlight Charm?'_

 _He shook his head. 'Not very well, and I wouldn't want to risk casting it on you, in case I botch it.' Harry gave her a small wry smile, 'Sorry.' In that moment she felt like a little bit of light had just seeped back into her world._

 _'If I had …could I borrow your wand?' she asked tentatively, 'I'll cast it on myself.'_

 _He fixed her with a look that she didn't have time to comprehend before it was gone, he gave her a nod and fished his wand back out from his pocket and handed it over to her without hesitation. She reached out from under the cloak with a slightly trembling hand and numb fingers that took a couple of tries before they managed to clutch it from his hand._

 _'Could …umm …could you close your eyes again, please? I …I need to open the cloak for a moment.' Her voice sounded timid to her own ears and she knew that he had no reason to trust her; she was a Slytherin, and he a Gryffindor and yet he simply closed his eyes and waited for her to cast the spell._

 _She shrugged the cloak out of the way, knowing that the closer she targeted the centre of her mass the lighter she would be. When she was sure she had performed the spell correctly, she retracted the wand from her bodice and pulled the cloak back around her tightly._

 _'I'm ready,' she said, holding the wand out to him so that he could pocket it again._

 _His voice was kind, and he gave her a crooked grin, 'Hold on to it for a while, you never know you may need it again to look after me.' Bending slightly, he lifted her into his arms with little effort, before they were moving swiftly away from the battle zone and towards the castle, leaving the unconscious Nayden in the snow behind them._

She blinked back the tears in her eyes and looked once more on Harry's face. He was still sleeping deeply, and his steady breathing was still comforting as her memories continued to plague her mind, she stretched up and gave a feather light kiss to his chin and then several along his jaw. In hindsight, she was sure that she had fallen in love with him in that moment when he had told her to retain his wand.

The trust that he had shown her in that moment and the instant safety she felt with his wand in her hand, whilst being cradled in his arms and wrapped in his cloak was something that she was never able to fully describe to her friends.

 _As they neared the entry hall she buried her head into the crook of his neck, not wanting to see pity in anyone's eyes as they passed. He smelt fresh, so she breathed in again deeper and caught the scent of mint, the ocean and sandalwood among other things._

 _She heard the gasps of several people who obviously saw them and heard their running footsteps and the doors opening to the Great Hall as they dashed back inside. The faces she caught from the corner of her eyes were white with shock, some found their voice to ask what had happened, but Harry just ignored them all and continued straight past them towards the Infirmary._

 _They were approaching the Infirmary doors when the sounds of several people running reached her ears, and she turned her head to look over Harry's shoulder. Professors Dumbledore, McGonagall, Snape and Madam Pomfrey had just turned down the Infirmary corridor some fifty metres away and were rushing after them._

 _But Harry it seemed was oblivious to them all. He had asked her several times during their journey together if she was okay, but no-one else's voice seemed to register with him. All of his focus and attention was aimed squarely at her. She felt her face flush as she thought about this and she decided that she could absolutely get used to being the focus of his attention, if he treated her as wonderfully as he had done so far._

 _She was brought back to the present as he pushed the Infirmary doors open and entered the ward. But he didn't stop moving once inside, he strode purposefully across the room and made his way over to a bed that was close to the window and lowered her gently on to it._

 _'I think you will be okay now,' he said, smiling down softly at her as he let her go. Without his presence so close to her, she felt small, cold and alone._

 _'Keep the cloak until you're finished with it. I will however need my wand back, though if you don't mind.' His voice was still soft and soothing, a shy smile ghosting on his lips as he waited for her to hand it back to him; he didn't move to take it from her hand, he merely waited until she was ready to release it back to him._

 _She gave him a cautious smile of her own, she was about to reach out to give the wand back to him when she changed her mind and used her free hand to catch his hand instead, suddenly not wanting him to leave. 'Please stay, at least until I'm asleep.' She saw the surprise written on his face, and so she squeezed his hand and reiterated 'Please.'_

 _Even after he had nodded his assent, she was loathe to release his hand, it was warm and she so wanted to feel warmth right now. She continued to hold his hand, forcing him to awkwardly pull up a chair and sit down. They were staring shyly at each other and still holding hands when the staff finally arrived, wheezing slightly from what had probably been the first time they had run in a long while._

 _It was Madam Pomfrey who moved first, she took one look at her battered and bleeding feet which were poking out of the end of the cloak, and sprang into action, cutting off any comments the others had by drawing curtains around the bed and blocking the rest of the staff from view._

 _'I'm going to have to ask you to leave Mr Potter,' the medi witch said in a perfunctory fashion, bustling over to him and trying to chivvy him out of the seat._

 _'He stays,' she blurted out, her voice as calm and controlled as she could make it under the circumstances. She felt better with him there holding her hand, she knew that he would protect her even if she still held his wand, she needed him as an anchor right now or she would break, she knew this in her heart._

 _Madam Pomfrey bristled at this. 'Miss Greengrass, I am going to have to give you a comprehensive exam, which will mean that you are going to lose a majority, if not all of your clothes, I do not think it appropriate for …'_

 _She cut the medi witch off. 'He stays, I want him to stay.' Her voice was full of anguish, and she knew he heard it. 'I am sure that Harry can be trusted to keep his eyes closed.'_

 _She watched hopefully as he tilted his head slightly, as if considering her an interesting puzzle box that he couldn't solve. Finally he nodded his head to her, and she let out a breath that she didn't know that she had been holding._

 _'Madam Pomfrey, can you conjure me a blindfold please?' He smiled at her. 'I thank you for your trust Grrr …er …Daphne.' He blushed slightly as he stumbled on her name. 'But I am just a teenage boy and you are a very pretty girl. I fear the temptation might be too much, should I be forced to depend on my will power alone.'_

 _He gave her that crooked grin again, and even though it shouldn't have after the evening's events, her heart gave a little skip and she blushed at his honest compliment. She knew that she was far from looking her best right now, bloody, battered and bruised, dress torn in multiple places, hair askew and her makeup running everywhere and yet still he thought her pretty._

 _'But I will stay if you want me too,' he said cutting through her thoughts, and all she could do was nod her assent with wet eyes._

 _And so he sat there, taking possession of his wand again in his other hand when Madam Pomfrey told her to give it back to him. Her hands were shaking again, and worry twisted in her stomach as she watched Madam Pomfrey ready her equipment for the exam._

 _He obviously picked up on this fact moments before he was to be blindfolded; in what was a thicker than strictly necessary eye mask, he looked her in the eyes and said quietly, 'You'll get through this Daphne, don't let him win. You are a strong and resilient witch, you can do this.'_

 _A lump caught in her throat and tears threatened to flow again at his words, but she couldn't look away from his eyes until Madam Pomfrey covered them with the mask holding it in place with a medical sticking charm. She braced herself holding tight to Harry's words and gave Madam Pomfrey a shaky nod of her head indicating she was ready to proceed with the exam._

 _Madam Pomfrey gave her a warm smile before pulling the cloak further away from her feet and started working her way up her body, a Dicta Quill dutifully recording all her findings._

 _He gave her comfort by softly squeezing her hand when she was asked tough and personal questions about what had happened, talking to her during the forty minute examination when he was allowed to, distracting her from the tests and in the silences when Madam Pomfrey was repairing the damage to her body._

 _She learnt more about him in that time than she had in their entire three and a half years of school together. And even though she knew that he couldn't see her, as she sat there for several minutes in just her knickers as Madam Pomfrey examined and recorded the bruising on her breast, shoulders, back and ribs, she couldn't help but blush a little every time she felt his unseeing eyes on her._

 _Several minutes after the end of the exam, she had been bundled into a hospital robe which forced her to let go of Harry's hand much to her dismay. His hand however remained there waiting for her, some of her dried blood staining his fingers as she was tucked under the fresh blankets. Only then did Madam Pomfrey deem her appropriately attired to be in the presence of a young man and finally removed the blindfold from Harry's eyes_

 _As soon as she was able, she clasped his hand again, pulling it slightly closer to her, as she got as comfortable as she could in a bed that wasn't her own._

 _She was swathed in bandages, ointments and other unguents, most of her blood had been wiped from her body but she wouldn't be allowed to shower until the morning. She had been given a vial of potion to take which would help her go to sleep, but she wanted to wait for his vision to be restored before taking it._

 _Whilst he was still blinking from the light entering his eyes for the first time in more than half an hour, Madam Pomfrey left the curtained area, giving her strict instructions that she was to drink the potion in the next couple of minutes. She pulled him from his seat and forward so that he sat on the side of her bed._

 _She studied his face for a moment, grabbed a handful of his robes and gently tugged his face down towards her own. She licked her suddenly dry lips and then she planted a lingering kiss on his cheek._

 _Her voice broke as she released him and sank back into the bed, 'Thank you, Harry; I will forever be in your debt.' A tear escaped from her eye, rolled down her cheek and onto the pillow._

 _He sat back on her bed and touched his cheek where she had kissed him, wonder written on his face. Still blinking slightly against the light, he smiled again, 'No you won't Daphne; I only did what anyone else would have done, you don't owe me anything.'_

 _Another tear traced its way down her face, and he reached a cautious hand out and thumbed it away. She felt a powerful urge to turn her cheek into his palm and nuzzle it, but managed to refrain from doing so. 'Now drink your potion and get some rest,' he said in his gentle voice._

 _She gave him a weak smile, and lifted the vial of potion Madam Pomfrey had handed her not two minutes ago towards her mouth. 'Will you be here when I wake up?' she asked him falteringly, still not wanting him to leave._

 _'If you wish me to be,' he gave her a smile that danced in his eyes. At her shy nod he continued, 'Then I will do my very best to be here when you wake, now drink your potion.'_

 _She tipped the potion in her mouth and swallowed, half gagging on the taste._

 _'Yes I know; vile stuff isn't it?' He chuckled slightly at the mew of distaste that left her mouth. 'I will see you in the morning Daphne, until then sweet dreams.' With that he bent forward and kissed her softly on her forehead._

 _She felt warmth blossom through her body, but didn't know if it was from the potion or Harry's kiss. She smiled sleepily, looking one last time at the boy with vivid green eyes who had rescued her, before her eyes closed and sleep claimed her._


	2. Part 2 - The Aftermath

**AN - As I mentioned in the last chapter, Dorothea Greengrass has been ridiculously dedicated and helpful to me with this idea. Without her input, thoughts, well crafted ideas and pointing out my stupid mistakes this story would be so much less than it is. So for a second time - Thank You Dorothea, You Rock and I love your story "A Marriage of Convenience" it's been a pleasure to work with you on both these stories - long may it continue.**

 **A Pearl of Great Price**

 **Part 2 – The Aftermath**

He woke with a start. Warmth ran down his shoulder, and for a minute he was back in the middle of battle, blood trickling down his arm as they battled Death Eaters.

Blinking his eyes rapidly and giving his head a small shake to rid himself of the last vestiges of sleep, he took in his surroundings. Hogwarts, he was back at Hogwarts in his bed, there were no Death Eaters, and he and Daphne were safe.

Daphne! The thought shot through his head. He could still feel the warm liquid trailing down his shoulder, only it wasn't blood; it was warm wet tears cascading down from his beautiful girlfriend's ice blue eyes.

'Oh! Baby girl, I'm so sorry I didn't wake earlier!' He pulled her closer, running a soothing hand up and down her naked back and kissed her hair. 'You should have woken me, Honey.'

She shook her head, not answering, and burying her face into his shoulder, as usual not wanting him to see her cry over this. He knew exactly why she was crying, he had tried in vain to stay awake until she went to sleep.

He suspected that she had dosed him with a small amount of Sleeping Draught so that she wouldn't wake him whilst she re-lived that night over and over again. Christmas time, he thought as he tried to comfort the girl in his arms, could really suck, if you had the right motivation.

He could remember that night vividly. It had been the night when many small magical ripples washed out from the castle before they surged back in, ripping a hole in the fabric that was Magical Britain as he had come to know it.

He pulled her up his body, bringing her face to face with him. Her eyes were red rimmed and blood-shot, tear tracks streaked across her beautiful face. He laid kisses across her cheekbones, at the corners of her mouth, on her eyes and finally her forehead as his thoughts flickered to that first kiss he had given her.

 _He watched as her eyes closed, finally dropping off into a magically induced sleep. He sat still on her bed, he could feel where her lips had lingered on his cheek and he could taste the salt from her dried sweat on his lips, after he had kissed her forehead._

 _She looked peaceful now, although her brow still had a small furrow in it. For the first time since he had seen her bound lying on her back on that path in the winter garden, she was at rest and she looked beautiful, no makeup, face almost relaxed, and her blonde hair somewhat bedraggled, but still mostly swept up leaving her delicate neck bare with a couple of whisps framing her face._

 _He knew he should leave her to rest, but he couldn't bring himself to just yet; he felt …protective of her. He looked down at his hand that had been holding hers for the better part of forty or fifty minutes and noticed for the first time her dried blood on it._

 _His rage washed back over him and he clenched his fist, knuckles turning white as he looked down on them, even through the blood. It was the same rage that he had felt when he had first spotted her. She didn't deserve what had happened to her, no-one did._

 _Another wave flooded his body, a rage and anger like he had never felt before. He thought about what might have happened to her if he hadn't found them. The anger and rage was bubbling just below the surface, aching for an outlet._

 _He had managed to suppress the white hot rage that had fuel him in the garden, as soon as he had put the animal down who had been standing over her. One look at her frightened face had convinced him that he needed to be calm for her sake, getting angry and snapping would only make it worse for her, and none of it was her fault._

 _Sitting next to her, listening as she described the events of the evening, had been the hardest thing he had ever had to do in his short life. He knew abuse; he had lived with it for as far back as he could remember. At least his was mainly verbal, or the restriction of food, and not sexual in nature; he doubted that he'd have coped if it was._

 _He returned his gaze to her, hoping that it would cool the fires of his anger; they mellowed slightly, but he could still feel them fighting for oxygen, demanding that he let them burn the world. He couldn't stay, but he would keep his promise and be here when she woke._

 _He lent forward once more and gave her another soft kiss to the forehead. She sighed in her sleep, her brow no longer furrowed when he pulled back. Someone was going to pay for what had happened tonight, and he knew just the someone._

 _He wasn't even a metre outside the curtain when he heard it. 'Ah, Harry, my boy, I'm glad to see you at last.'_

 _He wasn't in the mood for this; for the first time in his life his anger was controlled and focussed, his voice ice cold. 'Where are the Aurors?' Looking around he could see that only Dumbledore and Snape were left in the infirmary, sitting in two comfy dark red leather chairs obviously conjured by Dumbledore himself, off to the side of the curtained bed._

' _Now Harry,' Dumbledore started, but he cut him off._

' _I said; where are the Aurors? Surely they should be here by now?'_

' _Now, my boy, I am …'_

 _Harry cut through Dumbledore's platitudes again. 'If you won't tell me where they are, then I'll find them myself!' He started moving towards the door, ignoring the words that he heard from Snape like the buzzing of an insect._

' _Your arrogance knows no bounds Potter, just like your father's.' Snape sneered at him from the other seat on Dumbledore's right._

 _He stalked toward the door, his wand had somehow found its way into his hand and he could feel his magic swirling around him, still begging to be unleashed._

' _I'm sorry, Harry, but I can't allow you to leave until we have a thorough understanding of what has happened tonight. And then we will call the Aurors, if I deem it necessary; after all, I am sure it's just a misunderstanding.'_

 _He heard the locks on the infirmary doors click into place. His fingers popped as they clenched tighter around his wand replaying Dumbledore's last words in his head,_ ' _ **If I deem them necessary!'**_ _He shook his head trying to comprehend what Dumbledore was saying. '_ _ **If I deem them necessary!'**_ _Who was he to determine if they were necessary in a case like this? Of course they were bloody necessary!_

 _He swung back to face the Headmaster, 'You want to know what happened?' He snarled at them, biting off every word. 'A crime was committed, that's what happened, Professor; a girl was sexually assaulted and you want to know what happened? That's not your job, Headmaster.' Sarcasm laced the last word._

 _He turned and faced the doors, once more pointing his wand at them; his magic was biting, spitting and hissing, wanting to be used. 'Accio doors!' he whispered, wrenching his wand down towards his feet. The doors cracked out of their frames, pulling their hinges from the stone, and slid to a halt at his feet, still locked together._

 _Silence._

 _At least thirty sets of wide eyes stared at him through the settling dust of the now empty doorway._

 _Neither Dumbledore nor Snape said a word to him and neither did he look back as he stepped up onto one of the doors and continued his march out of the infirmary. He stopped in front of the gathered students, most of whom were Slytherin. None of them spoke to him; they just stared slack jawed between him and the doors, now resting three metres inside the infirmary._

 _He knew who he was looking for, and come hell or high water he would ensure that Aurors were on their way to the castle as soon as possible._

' _Where is Susan Bones?' His voice was still tinged with ice. He was not in the mood to deal with the usual shit that Slytherins gave him._

' _Ummm, I think she's still in the Great Hall, why?' He recognised the speaker as Adrian Vaisey, one of the chasers from the Slytherin Quidditch team. 'Is Daphne ok?' he asked, worry clearly evident in his voice._

 _Harry grimaced. 'She's as well as can be expected, I guess, she's sleeping now, though.'_

 _Vaisey nodded. 'Why do you need Bones?'_

' _Aurors.'_

' _Right; well, I'll come with you then, one of my elder brother's is one; if Bones can't get hold of them quickly, I might be able to help come up with something.' His tone was clipped, and Harry could tell that he was angry, but not at him. Not bothering to wait for an answer he pivoted on his toes and they fell in step._

 _They were nearing the Great Hall when Vaisey grabbed his arm. 'You need to calm down Potter. You're not going to do Daphne any good by going off half-cocked and getting angry with everyone. She's my first cousin on her mother's side, and I know that whatever has happened must be pretty bad for you to be this pissed off, but you need to calm down. I can smell the fucking magic pouring off you from here.'_

 _He stared at Vaisey's hand on his arm coldly, before lifting his eyes to the tall blonde Slytherin's. 'I am calm Vaisey, if I was about to crack it, trust me, you'd know.'_

 _Vaisey just gulped and nodded, snatching his hand back and gesturing Harry onwards._

 _Vaisey stepped up alongside him once more as they moved through the doors. Harry's eyes roved over the crowds of students who continued to dance, having a good time to the music still being pumped out by the Weird Sisters, oblivious to the heinous act that had been perpetrated against one of them._

 _He felt his blood boil again at the thought, and struggled once more to bring his anger to heel. Whilst he had been scanning the dancers, Vaisey had obviously been looking over the tables pushed to the sides of the room, because he tapped his arm and pointed._

 _He looked to where Vaisey was indicating and through the occasional gaps in the dance floor could see four of the five Hufflepuff girls from his year sitting at one of the last tables in the back of the room. All of them had at least one of their feet propped up on other chairs and their shoes off._

 _Susan sat near Megan Jones, leaning closer to the Welsh girl so that she could be heard above the screaming guitar of the band, massaging one of her feet, as they watched some of their friends continue to dance in the crowd._

 _He strode across the dance floor; the crowds seemed to part for him as though he were Moses and this was the Red Sea. He heard a muttered 'Shit!' from Vaisey as the older boy followed in his wake, ensuring that he made it across the dance floor at the same time as Harry._

 _Megan elbowed Susan and pointed at them, a look of slight concern crossing her face as they drew near to the group of Hufflepuffs. Susan turned her head and watched as they approached, obviously made of sterner stuff than Jones as her only reaction was one of mild curiosity._

 _He pushed his anger down further as he drew nearer. This was not Susan's fault any more than it was Daphne's, and he needed her help. 'Susan.' He tried to use the same voice he had used when talking to Daphne, but knew that he had failed when Susan quirked an eyebrow._

' _Harry?' Susan's rejoinder was measured and polite, but her face was still curious._

' _I need your help.' He felt his arm being tapped again by Vaisey and turned a cold glare on the other boy once more._

 _This time Adrian didn't flinch. 'We! Potter,' he said pointing between them. 'We! That's my cousin lying in the infirmary!'_

 _He locked a hard glare on the Slytherin boys eyes. Vaisey obviously cared for his cousin that much was evident. But he was a Slytherin and therefore couldn't be trusted!_

 _He blinked at that thought. What a total load of bullshit! He'd trusted Daphne with his wand, and she_ _ **was**_ _a Slytherin, she wasn't evil incarnate, just a girl the same as Hermione. His mind made up he gave a short nod to Vaisey, who relaxed a little, and then he turned back to Susan. 'We need your help, now how quickly can you get in contact with your Aunt?'_

Daphne's crying had mostly abated, she had rolled away from him so that he couldn't see her tears anymore, but his arms were wrapped around her. She was snuggled tightly against his chest, and from time to time he would plant kisses on her short hair and the back of her neck.

She hated crying about this; he knew she felt weak and powerless about what had happened. He had tried to reason with her many times about it; she had been an inexperienced young girl, not even fifteen, for Merlin's sake! She was allowed to make mistakes, and trusting the wrong boy was one mistake most girls made at some point.

'Yeah, but usually girls who make that mistake don't end nearly raped!'

He didn't have an answer to that and he knew that she didn't want him to, but it hurt him to see her in this type of pain every year.

The magical world didn't have rape counselling; in point of fact it had very little in the way of mental health services, something that still pissed him off to this day. Susan had dropped this bombshell on him after they had figured out a way to get in contact with Susan's Aunt.

Between Susan and Adrian they didn't exactly have a fast way to contact their families. Both of them, like so many others from magical families, used owls as their major means of communication. Susan had an emergency portkey which would drop her in the Auror Bullpen, but her Aunt had drummed into her that her life had better be in danger when she used it.

' _If I could call my elf, I'd get her to deliver the message, but I can't,' Adrian said, frustration colouring his voice._

' _Me too.' Susan agreed._

' _What are you two talking about?' Harry asked, irritated that calling Law Enforcement in the magical world was so bloody hard. They had already ruled out Flooing, as none of them had access to a connected Floo or Floo powder, and Owling would take too bloody long._

' _My house elf, she cannot come to my call in Hogwarts, she's forbidden to do so by my father.' Adrian's face was still a mask of concentration._

' _My Aunty did the same, it's kinda expected in magical houses that whilst in Hogwarts we learn to be independent,' Susan told him, still massaging her feet, Megan nodding her agreement behind Susan's shoulder._

' _Pity we can't use one of the Hogwarts elves, but they won't respond to the students,' Adrian mused before falling silent._

' _Maybe Dobby might …?' Harry thought aloud, but before he had finished, the elf in question had arrived._

' _The great and powerful Harry Potter sir bes calling Dobby? Oh, Dobby bes so happy to be in the presence of the good and kind Harry Potter sir.' Dobby was wailing and hugging Harry's leg. 'Dobby had hoped that Harry Potter sir bes coming to visit him in the kitchens, but Dobby knows that he has been very busy in the tourneymenty.'_

He suppressed a chuckle at the memory of Dobby's antics that night. At the time he hadn't been as amused. Dobby knew what he wanted him to do, but was frightened of running Harry's errands as he wasn't Harry's elf and therefore couldn't keep his secrets if somebody asked what he was doing.

Unfortunately Dobby speak made it difficult to determine what the problem actually was. Dobby kept hopping from foot to foot, saying it was his greatest wish to serve the wonderful and powerful great Harry Potter sir, but couldn't seem to articulate as to why he was so reluctant to do so.

It took a little time before Adrian had understood the issue and told him the solution.

' _Take him as your elf; he's a free elf, he's only loosely bound to Hogwarts, and he wants to work for the great Harry Potter sir.' A smile twisted at his lips at this. 'I don't understand the problem.'_

 _Dobby was nodding vigorously, his large bat like ears flopping over his eyes with every bounce of his head. 'Dobby would be so honoured, great master Harry Potter sir, to be his elf, Dobby wouldn't even want to be paid.' He shook his head, ears flying everywhere._

 _Harry frowned at Dobby before he glared at the Slytherin. 'The problem, Vaisey, is that it's enslavement!'_

 _Dobby's ears drooped at this statement, and he shook his head again. ''Tis not, Harry Potter sir.'_

' _Dragon shit.' Vaisey countered, following on from Dobby's statement. 'Who told you that crap? It's a bloody symbiotic bond, you idiot! He gets your magic to live on and as an added bonus, not go crazy and die over time; you get a willing worker and someone who loves to do the mundane tasks of life. You're not planning to beat him, are you?'_

' _Of course not!' He glowered at the Slytherin. Dobby looked offended on Harry's behalf at the remark._

' _Right, then what have you got to lose?' Adrian threw his hands in the air. 'Just do it, for Merlin's sake, bond with the little guy so he'll keep your secrets and so we can get on with delivering the message to Susan's aunt.'_

' _He's right Harry, it's all win, win, win here, I can't see a downside,' Susan added, and again Megan nodded her agreement to Susan's statement._

 _Harry massaged the bridge of his nose under his glasses; his anger was still burning a hole in his stomach and wanting a target to obliterate, and this delay wasn't helping. He knew that he was being quite short with both Vaisey and Susan. But for the most part they had been putting up with it, apart from delivering a few cutting remarks when he apparently went too far, and the occasional glare from Megan._

' _Fine, but just so you all know,' - he looked at Vaisey, Susan and Megan in turn - 'Hermione is going to kill me for this!'_

It had taken some time, but gradually he felt her breathing slow and the sobbing had ceased to shake her body. 'Do you want to talk about it, honey? I know that it doesn't always help, but it does sometimes.' She shook her head, but rolled back over so that she faced him once more, her eyes significantly red rimmed and blood-shot, shining with still more unshed tears.

Laying on his back, he pulled her closer to him, tucking her head into the crook of his neck. She wriggled herself even closer, a thigh stretched across his hips and an arm across his chest, as if trying to mould herself into his side forever. She was so close that he could feel the hair at the top of her sex resting against his leg, tickling him slightly as she breathed.

He started running patterns up and down her spine. There were a few things that he regretted from that evening: he had been a poor date to Pavarti; it had taken him months to realise exactly how poorly he had actually treated her that night. Daphne had dropped a thousand hints that he should apologise, before he finally understood what she was trying to get him to do without telling him to do it.

At least he had realised of his own that his behaviour to Susan that night left a lot to be desired, and apologised to her. Susan had laughed at him. "Harry, if you display that much determination to see justice done for a girl you hardly know, then I think I am a big enough girl not to worry about some small and meaningless snide comments made in frustration. I agreed with everything you were trying and are still trying to do, silly boy. That's why I helped you then, and if you need me now, I'll help you again.'

What he really regretted, though, was letting that mangy fucking animal out of his sight.

' _How long does it take to portkey from one place to another, for Merlin's sake!' Harry complained bitterly with increasing heat in his voice, for the fourth time as he paced in front of the school gates._

' _Harry! For Morgana's sake, sit down and shut up. Aunty said she was going to get here as soon as she could, but she needed to put the right team together first,' said Susan heatedly._

' _Harry, we get it, you're angry and pissed off; you saw what happened to Daphne and Dumbledore's inaction, but we are trying to help here; don't keep biting our heads off,' Megan said from alongside Susan._

 _Harry frowned at her. He hadn't exactly invited Megan, but she had followed along with Susan and was beginning to add her two knuts worth the longer the four of them were together. He leaned against the wall, trying to turn his mind from thinking about the girl lying in the infirmary._

' _I don't understand why Dumbledore wouldn't call the Aurors, he said finally. The other three looked at each other, silently debating who was going to answer Harry's unasked question._

 _Susan sighed, obviously losing the toss of the galleon. 'What you need to understand, Harry, is that in the Magical World, or at least in Magical Britain, these crimes are rarely investigated, as there is a perception out there that it has a detrimental effect on the House of the witch if nothing can be conclusively proved.'_

 _She folded her arms across her chest, indignation evident on her face as she looked at the ground in disgust. 'They would rather sweep it under the rug and limit the potential political fallout. Many will see the fault lying with Daphne, saying that she shouldn't have allowed herself to be put in such a compromising position.'_

 _Susan looked up at him. 'Dumbledore was probably trying to protect the reputation of Hogwarts. Daphne probably never even entered his considerations as he knows it's likely that the Lord of her House will attempt to sweep any and all investigations under the rug!'_

 _Harry stared at her, disbelief written all over his face. 'You cannot be serious!' Rage flooded him once more. 'She …no …no this will not be allowed to stand!' He muttered to himself. 'Fuck no! This bullshit stops now; this was not Daphne's fault! She was trying to get away.'_

 _His anger flowed out again and he turned, wand in hand, and focused on a section of wall fifteen metres away and roared, 'Bombarda!' The offending section of wall seemed to flex, bulge out and then disintegrate in a shower of rocks and mortar._

 _At that very moment a team of four Auror's and Madam Bones stepped through the Hogwarts gates, wands materialising in hands. They dropped into a battle formation, covering all angles of attack, positioning Madam Bones in the centre without thought or instruction._

 _Calls of clear rang around the group, and they relaxed slightly, Madam Bones staring curiously at Harry before turning her attention to her niece. 'Susan, is everything alright here?'_

 _Susan looked at Harry, gave him a wry shake of her head, and turned back to her Aunt. 'Kind of, I just - ummm - gave Harry some home truths about the usual way that sexual assault is dealt with in the magical world, and he seemed to disagree with the sentiment.'_

' _Right, then. Well, now you know what we are up against, we'll need to get started asap; I have with me, Senior Auror Constance Hammer who will take point on the investigation whilst I run interference. Her team are Lead Auror Sara Jones, along with Aurors Zoe Blake and Cassandra Dormer. Who have we got here, Susan? Although I think I recognise all three of them.' Madam Bones was business like and formal, except for a slight up turning of the lips at the end of her statement._

' _Right,' Susan said, looking around at them and indicated each as she said their names before pointing back to Harry. 'Harry was a witness to the end of the events; from what he has told us he rescued Daphne. So maybe he should take you through what he knows and bring you up to speed.'_

 _He led them all towards the Castle and then out into the first section of the Winter Garden. The ball was winding down, and whilst a majority of students were still inside, enjoying the last songs, there were a few couples loitering around the entrance hall and the entry to the Winter Garden, who watched in confusion as the Aurors and the teens passed._

' _Right, Hammer, in order of priority, secure the suspect; I want him in a secure cell asap, secure the crime scene, secure Pomfrey's medical report, and then start collecting evidence. I want Potter's witness statement before we leave tonight, not just on the scene he walked into, but also his recollections of everything right up until he blew a hole in the boundary wall. And then, if we have time, I want Poppy Pomfrey's statement and Minerva McGonagall's as well. Got it?'_

' _On it, boss,' Connie Hammer said, sketching a loose salute at Madam Bones. She swung her attention to the other teenagers, 'You three can come with us if you want, as it will mean that I can keep an eye on you, or you can go to your dorm rooms and wait until I release you. If you come, you stay where I direct you and do as you're told, do you understand?' She gave them a level stare and waited for their acknowledgement._

' _I think I'm going to leave and head to bed,' Megan mused. 'I'm tired and my feet are killing me. If that's okay with you, Auror Hammer?'_

 _Connie nodded._

' _I think I'm on that broom, too. We'll be in Hufflepuff, Connie,' piped up Susan with a grin at Auror Hammer. 'Come find me tomorrow, you two, and bring me up to speed if you're allowed!' She gave both Harry and Vaisey a pointed look that was softened with a smile._

 _Connie nodded and turned her attention to Vaisey. 'I'm staying!' the Slytherin said emphatically._

 _Connie swung her attention back to Harry, 'Alright, Potter, show us where it happened and walk us through your memories again.'_

 _Harry led the rest of them through the twists and turns of the Winter Garden. His anger was still seething within him as he contemplated what Susan had told him regarding Sexual Assault investigations._ _In addition to this, his scar was beginning to prickle and he could feel the first vestiges of a headache pulsing behind it as well._

 _As he rounded the last corner he froze in place. The son-of-a-bitch was nowhere to be seen. His scar prickled again. Snarling, he forced his magic at it and it stopped._ _That barely registered with him. Where was that prick who had hurt Daphne?_

 _He screamed in rage, feeling his magic battering and clawing at his skin to be unleashed. Reason warred within him and he was torn between wiping the Winter Garden from the face of the earth and ensuring he did nothing to damage the case against Daphne's attacker._

 _Daphne! He couldn't harm her case. He would never forgive himself if the bastard got off because of something he did. He he stalked to a wall and leaned up against it, pushing his once more prickling scar against the cool rock. He gestured down the path. 'When I left him he was bound up and lying over there.'_

Harry scowled as his memories flicked over the rest of the events of that night; the Auror team had quickly secured the area and set about following the rest of Madam Bones' instructions. He and Vaisey shadowed Hammer and Dormer as Jones and Blake left to find Madam Pomfrey.

 _Harry was bored, frustrated and his scar was prickling again as he watched the two Aurors meticulously process the scene. Vaisey, too, was agitated once it was determined that the scene where Harry had rescued Daphne was significantly compromised._

 _When Dormer found a painted toenail in the snow, Harry felt his anger spike once more. How frightened must she have been to keep running after losing her big toe nail? Vaisey had looked pale as Dormer photographed and then placed the nail in an evidence bag, obviously thinking along the same lines as Harry._

 _He wished he could just provide his formal statement now and be done with it so that he could go and vent, or sleep, or something other than just watching, waiting, and feeling beyond angry._

 _They moved through the garden, photographing the transient evidence and following Daphne's bloody footprints to what Hammer called the Origin Scene, as some of the narrow pathways wouldn't allow for a walk through without disturbing the evidence._

 _Harry saw a glint of silver in a hedge row as they passed. He stopped and blinked at the item: a silver necklace with a clasped single large pearl was hanging almost completely obscured in the hedge at his head height. Instinctively he reached out to grab it when he thought better of it. 'Auror Dormer, I think this is Daphne's necklace.'_

' _Yeah it's Daph's, it's her mæġdenhād gift,' Vaisey confirmed in a hollow voice. Harry frowned at the strange word, but was even more confused when Hammer told Dormer to log it, photograph it and then asked Vaisey if he wanted to return it to Daphne or whether they should._

 _Vaisey looked torn and uncertain._

' _I could return it if you want.' Harry said obviously shocking the other boy with the offer so he clarified his reasoning, 'She asked me to be there in the morning so I could return it then, if you want me to?' Harry told Vaisey as the boy hesitated further._

 _Vaisey turned his attention to Harry, a look of consternation on his face which Harry couldn't comprehend, when a smirk slowly crawled it's way across his lips. 'That would be great, Potter!'_

He had treated Adrian with hostility and anger on several occasions throughout the night, even though he didn't actually deserve it. Adrian had stuck with him from the time they left the infirmary until the Aurors had left in the very small hours of the morning. He had put up with a lot of crap from Harry that night, and yet he stuck by his side solving the problems they had with as much dogged determination as Hermione usually displayed.

 _Harry dragged his body through the halls of Hogwarts. It was 4am and the Aurors had just left, indicating that they would be back in the morning to interview Daphne. His scar was itchy and pulsing, giving him a constant headache, and he knew that he would be unable to sleep even if he tried._

 _His anger was still throbbing in his veins; his scar was burning now and had been for the better part of two hours. He had pressed more and more magic at it in an attempt to stop the irritation, and for the most part it seemed to be working, but now, no matter how much he was pushing, it didn't seem to be abating._

 _He shoved his hands in the pockets of his robes; the fingers of his left hand immediately felt the cool metal of Daphne's necklace. He took it out and studied it. The pearl was held in a single twist of metal which looked to be identical to the metal in the chain. It had what he assumed were very small diamonds running up opposite sides of each of the twist so that only one side showed at a time. He noticed the broken clasp and waved a Reparo over it, fixing it instantly._

 _What was so special about this necklace that it wasn't taken in as evidence, only photographed, catalogued and returned? His scar prickled venomously and he rubbed at it absently. Maybe he should just go and sit with Daphne until she woke._

He continued to trail his fingers along Daphne's back and she hummed in pleasure. He could still feel the occasional tear splash on his chest as she snuggled against him, but he didn't try to make her speak, she would talk to him when she was ready, she always did.

His mind flicked to the final event of that night. There were no witnesses and he had never really described what it was that pushed him to the edge and beyond, causing him to inadvertently save his own life.

 _She was still sleeping peacefully as he sat, but then again that was what Dreamless Sleep Potion was supposed to do. He sat close to her bed on the same chair that he had been in before he left her curtained area, what seemed a lifetime ago. Her hand was still above the blanket where he left it, as if waiting for him to hold it yet again._

 _He took the necklace out and studied it for a second time; it was simple, but elegantly beautiful, just like the girl who wore it. The thought startled him. When had he started thinking of her as beautiful? When had he looked past the green and silver and just seen the girl?_

 _Pain rippled through his scar and he closed his eyes. Flashes of Voldemort talking to somebody flickered past his vision and he clutched his head. 'No,' he hissed through the pain, 'Not now.' He gritted his teeth and pushed his magic at his scar once more; the method seemed to have been working for most of the night to keep the pain and prickling at bay._

 _He opened his eyes and looked back at the girl, noticing that his left hand which was still holding her necklace had at some point taken hers once more. More pain flooded his scar, and he flinched, eyes closing again, feeling like the throbbing was going to split his head in two. For a second time he pushed with his magic, wincing as the pain flared back at him, before his magic asserted its own pressure and pushed the pain back yet again._

 _He was panting and twitching now. Not wanting to wake Daphne, he took his wand out and cast a silencing spell around himself just as another burst of pain rolled through his scar. His wand dropped, clattering to the floor; muted agony rolled across him._ _He closed his eyes, only to have a vision of Voldemort fill his mind yet again_ _._

 _He could feel every beat of his heart through his scar. His vision flickered; Voldemort was talking to someone, 'Come Nagini, it's time for your dinner.' He watched in mute horror as Voldemort's eyes turned to a five or six year old boy._ _He was dressed like a Muggle._ _The boys stood still, terrified as the largest snake Harry had ever seen slid into view._

' _No, no, no, no!' Harry screamed voicelessly. He couldn't watch, he wanted to look away, he needed to look away! This wasn't real! He slammed his magic at the scar, and the vision rippled, but cleared as the snake closed in on the boy._

 _Tears were streaming down his face, his breathing was ragged and sweat had blossomed on his brow. 'No!' Again, he shrieked silently, and he smashed more magic at his scar, over and over again. 'Get out! Get out! Get out! You snakefaced bastard, get the fuck out of my head!' he screamed. Nobody heard his agony: his screams were extinguished by the charm he had cast on himself._

 _The vision faded from view like a TV with bad reception becoming fuzzy for a moment, only to clear as the snake rose above the child who still stood there trembling, urine running down his left leg, tears rolling out of his blue eyes. 'Mummy,' he cried and that one word broke Harry's heart, adding more heat to already well stoked fires of rage at all the world's injustices._

 _He coiled his magic within him as the snake seemed to sway above the boy, pausing as if enjoying the fear that was pouring off him, tongue flicking out as if tasting it._

' _I'm sorry,' He breathed out to the boy, knowing he couldn't hear him. Harry readied himself, and as the snake moved to strike, so did Harry. He drove a wedge of his magic at his scar, screaming in fury and pain. 'Get out of my head, you murdering snakefaced mother fucker! GET OUT AND DIE!'_

 _Pain flooded his head; eclipsing any that he had felt before, his scar tore open and blood ran down his face. He didn't care. The vision of Voldemort and the snake, cracked like a mirror and fell away, just as the snake's mouth opened, changing to a roiling black mass that he could see in his mind's eye. He gritted his teeth, pouring every ounce of magical power that he possessed into this shapeless entity._

 _Something shifted inside him and he felt his magic twist around it, striking at the thing, disintegrating tiny pieces off it with each blow._ _Somebody screamed. Was it him or that... thing?_ _Finally, when he felt like he had no more to give, the last tattered piece of the black mass dissolved into nothing and he felt a sense of weightlessness pass over him._

 _He collapsed against Daphne's bed, head resting in her lap, exhausted, but still holding her hand. He tried to blink back the tears which he felt forming for that poor boy, but lost the battle. Giving in he closed his eyes and wept._


	3. Part 3 - First Steps into a New World

**AN - As always, Dorothea Greengrass has been ridiculously dedicated and helpful to me with this idea. I can tell you all right now that without her input, thoughts, well crafted ideas and pointing out my stupid mistakes this story would be so much less than it currently is. So once again - Thank You Dorothea, You Rock and I love your story "A Marriage of Convenience" it's been a pleasure to work with you on both these stories - long may it continue, my friend.**

 **A Pearl of Great Price**

 **Part 3 – First Steps into a New World**

Harry felt himself shudder at the memory of that poor boy, another unknown muggle victim of the magical civil war. Daphne looked at him. Her curious eyes still brimming with tears. He smiled down at her reassuringly. 'I just remembered waking up after bleeding all over you, that's all.'

She gave a sad nod and laid her head back into the crook of his neck. He had scared the living daylights out of her that next morning. He could laugh at it somewhat now, but at the time he didn't know what was happening.

 _He felt something pushing at his shoulder. 'I'll get up later Ron,' he mumbled, before trying to go back to sleep._

 _'Harry, I need you to get up, please.' The voice was urgent, female and not Hermione. Moaning in protest, he licked his dry lips. His body felt wrong, twisted like he was sleeping forward somehow. He blinked his still sleep blurry_ _eyes, and clicked his jaw. 'Harry please, something's wrong, like I've …I just need you to move, please.' The voice was insistent, but there was embarrassment tainting it that he couldn't quite figure out._

' _Okay, okay, I'm up!' He pushed back, confirming he was actually seated in a chair. Yawning and bringing both hands to his face, he turned towards the voice and rubbed at his eyes under his glasses which were still blurry. Something in his left hand swung against his face, and he lowered his hands to look when a scream rent the air._

 _He shot out of the chair as if he'd been slapped, his wand smacking into his hand with the tip glowing. He stared at it slightly puzzled for a moment, unsure how it got there, when another scream rent the air and he crouched, looking around for a sign of trouble._ _He squinted. Why were his eyes that blurry?_

 _Seeing nothing, he turned back to the source of the screams. Daphne's beautiful, fuzzy, but pale face looked at him in alarm. 'Are you okay Harry?' Anxiety filled her voice as she lifted a hand to him, trying to get him to draw closer, face still mostly white only a hint of colour on her cheeks._

 _He was about to answer when Madam Pomfrey rushed up to the bed and froze. He took a reflexive step back, bringing him into range of Daphne's searching hand._

' _Harry, please come here.' She tugged on his hand, and he moved backwards at her insistent tug. Suddenly he found himself being pulled on to her bed, his face cradled in her bandaged hands as worried eyes looked him over. 'What did you do to yourself, Harry? There's blood all over your face and me.'_

' _Whaa …' His mind was a jumble of chaotic thoughts, but before he could make any sense out of what was happening, Madam Pomfrey was ordering Daphne to hold him still. He glared at the Medi-Witch, who plucked off his glasses, momentarily stunning him as the world came into sharp focus. But before he had time to contemplate this latest turn of events Madam Pomfrey was waving her wand in his face. With a quiet growl of frustration, he shoved his hands into his robe pockets, enduring the fussing with barely concealed annoyance._

He bent his head and looked down at the witch in his arms. Tears no longer slid from her eyes, but that haunted look he so hated to see in those wonderful blue orbs was still there. He knew it would remain there until she had dealt with the memories once more. He had no doubt that she was thinking of that night and the days, weeks and months that had followed, just as he was.

It wouldn't break her; he knew that his witch was made of sterner stuff than that; she had proved it when she had forgotten her own concerns that morning and dropped everything to make sure he was okay. She didn't freak out when she discovered her lap and legs were covered in his blood after he had spent the night with his scar busted open and weeping blood and some sort of black gore on her until she woke.

Unsure of what had happened at the time and unwilling to reveal the vision involving Voldemort; Harry had endured the fussing of the two women right up until Madam Pomfrey had tried to push him into a bed. She had been muttering to herself for fifteen minutes, still trying to understand how his bleeding scar had anything to do with his eyesight.

 _No, there was no way she'd make him stay in bed all day, not when he felt this good. 'Sorry, Madam Pomfrey, but my bed is already taken.' He indicated in Daphne's direction. 'I don't need to stay here; actually, I feel great, really!' His grumbling stomach lent credence to his words. Madam Pomfrey only scowled at him before she walked off, shaking her head, muttering about uncooperative students._

' _You best go feed that hungry beast, Harry.' Daphne smirked at him. He smiled sheepishly and blushed a bit. 'Thank you for being here when I woke … and thank you for waiting whilst I washed up … I want to … I know you said that I don't owe you …'_

 _Harry cut her off. 'You owe me nothing Daphne. I said I would be here and I'm happy to still be here; I'm so glad that you're mostly okay.' He screwed his face up slightly, 'I'm just glad that I went to find out what made the noise that I thought I had heard, rather than go and see what Snape and Karkaroff were arguing about when I saw them. So, don't worry your pretty …' He trailed off, blushing furiously as he registered belatedly what he had just called her._

 _An answering flush rose up her neck and onto her cheeks. 'So you do think I'm pretty, then?' she asked hopefully, staring at him through her eyelashes as her fingers picked at a seam on the fresh blanket._

 _He couldn't speak, just nod._

' _Thank you,' she almost whispered. 'I don't feel very pretty at the moment, I feel dirty and …' she trailed off again._

' _I'm sorry I bled all over you,' he blurted out, wincing as soon as he said it._

 _She gave a mirthless chuckle. 'Not quite what I meant, but thank you Harry.' She looked at him speculatively before she continued in a timid voice. 'Do you think we might be friends once I'm out of here … I know I am a Slytherin and all, and that you haven't had the best track record with our house, but well I just thought … that maybe … you might consider it?' She gave him a look of forlorn hope that broke Harry's already savaged heart._

 _He didn't need to think about that twice._ ' _I'd like that very much Daphne.' He beamed a smile at her._

 _She dipped her head shyly once more. 'So would I, Harry, so would I.'_

 _His stomach rumbled again, and she giggled. 'I think, if you stay here much longer I'm going to lose an arm. Go and come back when you can, I've enjoyed our chat very much,' she said, another shy smile tugging at her lips._

 _He grinned at her. 'Me too.' His hands went to his pockets as he rose, checking for his wand and his glasses which he now inexplicably no longer needed to wear, when his fingers brushed her necklace. 'Oh, this is yours,' he exclaimed, quickly pulling the pearl necklace from his pocket._

 _Her hand reached for her throat, 'How … how did you get that?' Her voice was tight suddenly and her body tense._

' _I ... umm ... found it, … when I was with the Aurors last night. Vaisey seemed reluctant to take it … to return it to you, but I thought you'd want it.' He frowned, first at the necklace and then at her. 'It was broken, obviously, but I fixed it … Did I do something wrong, because if I did, then I am sorry. Vaisey smirked at me when I volunteered to return it to you.'_

 _Her face lost some tension at the mention of Vaisey. 'Did he now? I think I'll be having a couple of words with my cousin. No, Harry, you did nothing wrong … well, not really … well it doesn't matter.' Her face and body resumed their previously mostly relaxed state._

' _It's a silly little pureblood tradition. It's nothing to worry about.' She turned her back and awkwardly pulled aside the loose hair that had escaped her upstyled hair from the previous evening with her still bandaged hands; she'd been unable to take it out and had forgotten to ask Madam Pomfrey for her assistance. 'Would you mind putting it on me?'_

 _He stared at her neck and gulped slightly, before nodding and moving to her side. Reaching out with tentative hands he drew the necklace around her neck. The heat in his cheeks flared as he accidently touched her warm, soft skin. His nerveless fingers fumbled slightly with the catch. Finally he had it open, and a small tingle of magic prickled in his fingers as the clasp closed._

 _She turned back to face him; colour dusted her cheeks as well. The pearl sat in the hollow of her neck, perfectly complementing her skin tone. Without thinking he mumbled, 'Beautiful.' She blushed and dipped her head once more, the hair she had used to frame her face now hiding her eyes from his, as he felt yet more heat on his cheeks and neck._

' _I ...umm … yeah, I... umm... should go, I'll see you later Daphne,' his voice squeaking causing him further embarrassment. Without waiting for an answer he dashed from the hospital ward._

He smiled to himself; he was so innocent back then, even after what he had saved Daphne from, and to be fair, he was still quite innocent in some ways today. The Great Hall had stopped talking when he, Vaisey, Bones and Jones had gathered at the end of the Hufflepuff table closest to the doors to talk and bring the girls up to speed with what had happened.

Snape had glared at Harry for the entirety of breakfast, and they had lingered, becoming some of the last people to leave well after the breakfast dishes had been cleared away. Daphne too was gone when he returned to the infirmary; she had been picked up from school by her parents and taken home to recuperate, at the behest of Lord Greengrass.

She had left him a note with Madam Pomfrey, apologising that she wouldn't be back until school started again, but she would like it very much if he would owl her. He still had every one of her letters from that Christmas break. Well, to be honest, he still had every letter and note she had ever written him.

The first had arrived around lunch, written in a shaky hand with tear splashes evident on it. Her Grandfather and Lord of her House had halted Madam Bones' investigation into "the incident", as he called it. No matter how her parents or she argued, he would not budge, saying Daphne's reputation was in tatters already from just the hint of impropriety.

In his (antiquated) opinion she should never have left the ball unchaperoned, and if the investigation was allowed to continue, she would never find a suitable husband as she was already being branded as a scarlet woman in Pureblood circles.

He didn't understand the logic of that argument. Surely anyone who cared for Daphne would want to see justice done?

He remembered walking morosely back to Gryffindor tower, ignoring everyone, including Ron and Hermione, and going to his bed. Ignoring the presents at the end of his bed, he drew his curtains shut, hit them with Sticking Charms and Silencing Spells, so he wouldn't be disturbed and eventually he slept for most of the afternoon.

And then the next pillar of Harry's world shook. He could remember his own "Incident" like it was yesterday.

' _Where have you been, and what's going on? Everyone's talking about how you carried Daphne Greengrass to the Infirmary, and no one has seen her since! And no one knows what happened! Is that why you sat with Susan, Megan and Vaisey this morning?' Hermione's voice cut through his troubled thoughts. Every set of eyes in the common room turned towards him, drawing him to a halt at the bottom of the stairs._

' _I've been telling her it's all a mistake and there'd be no way that you'd carry a slimy Slytherin to the infirmary,' Ron announced to all and sundry. Ron's face already showed signs of anger. Harry found himself frowning at Ron's words as he walked over to his friends._

 _Hermione glared at the redhead. 'And I know what I was told, Ronald; Morag McDougall said that she and Terry Boot saw him!' Her words were heated; apparently they'd been having this conversation for a long time._

 _Hermione poked Ron's chest, emphasising each point. 'She said that he was carrying an injured Daphne Greengrass through the Entrance Hall, and that he headed to the Infirmary. She also said that not five minutes later Professors Dumbledore, McGonagall and Snape, along with Madam Pomfrey, all hurried after him.'_

 _Harry opened his mouth to answer, but was cut off by Ron once more._

' _There's no way that Harry would help some snake bitch; they're all backstabbing, mini Death Eaters in training and not worthy of help!' Ron nearly roared the last part of his statement._

 _Harry's frown deepened as he considered Ron's words._

 _Hermione shook her head, ignored Ron and focused her attention on him. 'Well, Harry?'_

' _I found her in the Winter Garden and took her to the Infirmary,' he hedged, not wanting to spread what actually happened around, as it was Daphne's story to tell and could call into question his own training he had been trying to keep a secret from everyone._

' _Told you,' Hermione beamed in triumph at Ron._

 _Ron's face turned red and splotchy. 'Why the hell would you help a snake, Harry? You know they can't be trusted. So what if she was hurt? One of them would've come and found her eventually!'_

' _No, they wouldn't have… at least not in time.' He started to argue the point when Ron cut him off._

' _Who cares, she's only a bloody snake, mate, it's not like she's actually a good person.'_

' _How do you know that?' Harry's anger, still simmering under the surface, bubbled up in him once again. Daphne seemed to be a very nice girl, no different to Hermione; the only thing separating them was some bloody house colours._

' _What do you mean, "How do I know that?" Everyone knows that, no one good goes into Slytherin.' Ron was almost yelling at him now, as if volume were the deciding factor in this argument. 'You can't trust her, and besides, she probably got what she deserved, that Slytherin hussy. She's just trying to trick you, Harry.'_

 _His blood froze in his veins. 'What did you just say?' He growled at Ron, not believing the rubbish that was coming from his mouth; nobody, not even Malfoy deserved what had happened to Daphne, surely Ron couldn't mean what he had just said._

' _I said that the Slytherin hussy probably got what she deserved,' Ron repeated emphatically, his face blotching red with anger._

' _You're a fucking idiot, Ron,' Harry hissed. He regarded the boy in front of him with narrowed eyes, as if seeing him for the first time and not at all liking what he saw._

' _Harry,' Hermione admonished him._

 _He whipped his head around and glared at her._

 _A squeak escaped Hermione's lips. Her eyes widened in shock as she appraised his face, taking an involuntary step backwards at the anger visible on his face, and realisation dawning on her that he was in no mood for admonishment regarding his language_ _._

 _Ron's eyes bulged in his head, and spittle flew everywhere. 'No, you're the idiot, can't even tell when somebody's playing you! The Slytherin whore has already gotten into your head and filled …'_

 _Harry's left hand closed around Ron's throat, and he pushed him against the wall, his magic alive and singing in his mind, begging once more for release. 'Listen here, you bigoted fucking arsehole, if I hear one more word come out of your gob calling her names like you have in the past couple of minutes, you and I are going to meet wand to wand.'_

 _Ron's hands scrambled at his wrist, trying to break his hold._

 _He was seething and his anger was lending him strength, along with the magic dancing in his veins. How dare the red headed idiot say those things about Daphne? She had done nothing to deserve what that arsehole had done to her. 'For your information, you gigantic prick, when I found her, she was lying in the snow, with some sixth or seventh year bastard from Durmstrang standing over her, tying her up. Her dress was torn, her feet were bloody, and one of her big toe nails had been ripped off. And she had to lay there for another fifteen minutes whilst I tried to tire the fucker out before I actually had the balls to Stun him, so that I could make sure she was okay.'_

 _Ron's face was turning purple, but he didn't care. 'He had already sexually assaulted her, but the Aurors believe that he was going to rape and probably Obliviate her, you fucking prick. No one deserves that! No one! Had it been any other girl in the same position I would have done the same thing, even if it had been Pansy Parkinson! I still would have helped!'_

 _Again his wand was in his hand without a conscious decision to pull it out, and he brought it up and jabbed it into Ron's cheek. 'You make me sick! What you just said was worse than anything Malfoy has ever said to Hermione.'_

 _His wand was sending out the occasional spark that landed on Ron's face, causing him to whimper. With a disgusted shake of his head he released his grip on Ron's throat, and the redheaded boy slumped to the ground, cowering in fear as Harry's magic crackled and rippled around him. 'Get out of my sight, you sicken me; I cannot believe that I was friends with you if that's what you believe.'_

 _Ron scrambled to his feet, coughing and spluttering, before he ran towards the dorms, not looking back. Spinning on his heel Harry stalked towards the common room door, his magic still swirling round him like a vortex, ignoring everyone as he passed through the portal._

 _He looked at his watch, had it really been three hours since he had stormed from the common room? He flexed his fingers; he could almost feel his magic pooling in his hand. What was happening to his magic? Spells which he had only just learnt were now as simple as first year spells. Hell, he barely had to move his wand; all he had to do was think about what he wanted to happen and his magic seemed to snap out of him and do it, especially when he was angry._

 _He felt like he was brimming with energy, as though most of his magical reserves had come back from holidays and were now trying to cram themselves into his body that was suddenly too small to contain it all._

He bent his head once more to kiss Daphne on top of her head, allowing his lips to linger as he breathed in the scent of her shampoo. He didn't know what was in the products she used, but he could always find a hint of honey and coconut, a scent that he now associated with her.

She shifted slightly in his arms; her breathing no longer held that ragged edge, and she seemed far calmer than she had been even just fifteen minutes ago; if he didn't know better he would have suspected she was asleep.

Careful, so as not to disturb her, he lifted his hand from her back and glanced at his watch, a gift she had given him on his seventeenth birthday. The watch was expensive, given the fact that Tag Heuer was embossed in the centre of the silver case; he had tried to tell her that it was too much but she had raised a single eyebrow at him and told him, 'Shut up and put it on Harry. I'll spend as much of my money on you as I want, besides this is just your everyday watch, when we start attending more balls, I'll get you something really nice, maybe a Patek Phillipe that Hermione was talking about.'

The luminous dial indicated one forty five in the morning, meaning he had been awake for roughly an hour. He heaved a small sigh and smiled; he would wait until she was ready to talk, sometimes you just needed a little time or two days for your own thoughts.

' _Harry?' Katie Bell's voice cut through his musings as he stood looking over the place where his life had taken a sudden curve to the left._

' _Huh?' he asked, not actually hearing what she had said._

' _Very eloquent, Harry,' Katie smiled back at him before her face fell slightly. 'I've been looking for you for ages, I asked if I could talk to you for a moment about something very important?'_

 _He shot her a puzzled look, but acquiesced with a nod of his head. Katie gave him a shaky smile before she continued. 'You'll need some background for this before I get into what we … err … I want to talk to you about.' Katie leant against the window lintel and looked out before starting to talk again, 'You see, Harry, when my mother went to Hogwarts she was sorted into Ravenclaw; she made some very good friends in other houses, but her three best friends were all sorted in to the House of the Eagles with her._

' _One was a girl called Meredith Sagen, another was Meredith's first cousin Selene Vaisey, and the third a girl called Dahlia Kershaw. When they left Hogwarts and eventually married a couple of years later, Selene became Selene Greengrass, Dahlia became Dahlia Parkinson, and my mother Roxanne Danvers married my father Hayden and became a Bell.'_

 _He looked at her, puzzled. 'What happened to Meredith?'_

 _Katie's face fell again. 'In the summer before their seventh year, the First Blood War was still simmering, and Meredith and her family got caught up in it. Meredith's father was a very skilled Auror and had inflicted a lot of damage to some of You-Know-Who's operations. One night they were attacked in their home and killed.'_

 _Harry looked at her in shock. 'What does this have to do with me?'_

' _I'm getting there. My mother and her friends managed to get hold of the Auror reports into the deaths of the Sagen family several years after they graduated, thanks to Selene's husband. I think that they all wished they hadn't; the report indicated that Meredith was raped several times before being killed along with the rest of her family. The perpetrator was supposedly never identified, and hence there was no justice for my mother's friend. '_

' _I still don't understand, Katie.' He felt slightly disturbed by this turn of events; his thoughts flicked to Daphne, what if scenarios flashing through his mind once more, until Katie's words pulled him out of them._

' _Those three girls bore daughters of their own, first Dahlia, then Roxanne, and finally Selene. Those three daughters, Iris, Katie and Daphne, played together very happily, along with their other siblings as they came along, until it was time for the eldest two to go to Hogwarts, leaving behind the youngest of the three eldest.'_

 _Katie sighed, rubbing her hands on her casual robes. 'Iris and myself have maintained our friendship whilst in school quietly, but it's been harder for me to talk to Daph when we are here, without getting her attention that she doesn't need, given that we aren't even in the same class.'_

' _What is it you want me to do, Katie? I'm sorry to hear about your mother's friend, I really am, but what is it exactly that you want from me?' Comprehension dawned on him. 'Hold up a second, if Daphne is Selene's daughter, then that makes Iris a Parkinson! Does Pansy have a sister? You want me to voluntarily talk to a Parkinson?'_

 _Katie glared at him. 'Iris is a lovely girl, so stop casting aspersions, Harry. Yes, Pansy is Iris' little sister, but you couldn't find two sisters more different in attitude. Do you really think I would be friends with someone like Pansy has turned into? Pansy used to be fine, by the way, a little shrill occasionally, but Iris said that nowadays she has her head so far up Draco's arse it's a wonder she can breathe.'_

 _Harry blanched at the mental image Katie's words conjured in his mind, as the girl continued. 'Iris is kind, intelligent, sarcastic, and funny; once she gets to know you she'll tease you until you blush. She is also the girlfriend of the Slytherin you were having breakfast with the other morning at the Hufflepuff table.'_

 _Katie looked at him, determination shining in her eyes. 'I want you to come and talk to Iris and me and tell us what happened, so we can work out a way to support Daphne when she comes back. Even with how angry you were, I think you only let slip a little of the information that you know. We want to help our friend, Harry. Our mothers never got the opportunity to help their friend, please let us try to help ours.'_

' _I ... umm … it's not my story to tell, Katie, I shouldn't have said what I said in the common room. I was stupid and so very angry at R… at the red-headed idiot that I lost track of what I was saying.' He hung his head, looking at the ground in front of him when Katie spoke again._

' _I know Harry, but trust me, Daphne won't hold this against you, in fact if I know my friend she is going to be very chuffed at the way you defended her, not to mention the way you pulled the Infirmary doors down to ensure the Aurors were called.'_

 _Katie gave a suggestive chuckle. 'In fact, when Iris or I tell her what you did, I wouldn't be surprised if she instantaneously melted into a puddle of hormonal girl goo at our feet. Iris said you looked particularly hot ripping those doors down and then walking over them like nothing had happened.'_

 _Harry's face flushed, and Katie laughed again. 'You're going to be so much fun to have around, Harry, and if you start hanging around Daphne it will mean that none of us have to hide our friendships anymore.'_

' _Huh?' He was at a loss to understand what Katie meant by her last statement._

' _Honestly, Harry, no one, and I mean no one, is going to mess with you for a while. Everyone knows that you ripped those doors down like it was nothing. Several seventh year boys have been trying to replicate your feat on unused classroom doors, and none of them have come close yet.' Katie shook her head as he blinked at her, still not understanding her point._

' _If you're okay with it and Iris, Daphne and I can hang out with you, no one is going to tell us that we aren't allowed to be friends, and quite frankly I can't stand having to hide the fact that two of my best friends are from Slytherin.'_

 _He nodded, finally understanding. 'You really don't think Daphne will be angry with me for spilling her secrets?'_

 _Katie reached out, put her hand on his shoulder, and squeezed it reassuringly. 'Like I said before, she will be flattered you were defending her honour, quite vigorously too, I might add. I don't think she will object to me and Iris knowing more, and given that the information you let slip the other day is likely doing the rounds anyway, we just want to be in a position to help our friend.'_

 _Defeated, Harry sighed. 'Fine let's go then.'_

 _He watched the shadows lengthen through the window of one of the library study rooms. The afternoon conversations with the two girls since - Katie had practically kidnapped and dragged him through Hogwarts - had left him drained, yet somehow lighter. They had managed to wheedle everything about that evening and next morning from him, as well as some of what was in Daphne's letters and those he returned to her. Occasionally they'd laugh at him, cry silent tears or storm about the room, trying to get their anger under control._

 _At one point he was sure that Iris was going to incinerate him where he stood until he explained why it had taken him so long to effect the rescue. The fact he admitted to being scared that he would be captured and therefore be unable to help Daphne had eventually placated the girl._

 _The worst moment of reliving the whole ordeal was admitting that Madam Bones had been forced to suspend the investigation by the elderly Lord Greengrass. His own anger didn't hold a candle to the vitriol that had poured from both girls mouths at that revelation._

 _He looked at his watch again. 'Got a hot date somewhere in the castle, Harry?' Iris Parkinson teased him, a merry twinkle in her eye. She had gradually begun her gentle teasing of him when he had blushed telling them about Daphne's torn dress and how he had covered her with his cloak._

 _He smiled at her and shook his head. 'No, just trying to figure out how long I have been in such riveting company.'_

' _Aww, look at that, Katie, the boy's getting some game, maybe he won't look like he's sunburnt all the time when Daph comes back and he accidently looks at her chest when he's talking to her.'_

 _Harry's face went as red as a tomato again._

' _Nope, spoke to soon.' Iris chortled at him; her eyes were alight and full of mirth. Without being introduced to her, he would never have guessed that Iris was Pansy's sister. If you looked close enough the similarities were there, but you had to be looking._

 _Iris was light to Pansy's dark, about the only things they shared he could see on first glance was their olive skin tone and a heart shaped face. Iris had shoulder length, mocha coloured hair, hazel eyes and a slightly upturned nose. There was no doubt she was pretty, she laughed easily and regularly at him after the first thirty or so minutes; Katie was right, she loved to make people blush._

' _Okay, so what is it exactly you want me to do? I get you want to rally support around Daphne after what's happened, but I get the feeling that you two are angling for more.'_

 _Katie and Iris glanced at each other before Katie turned back to Harry. 'We talked before I went to find you, we knew it was likely that old Lord Greengrass was going to try and sweep this under the rug. It happens all the time in Pureblood society and we're sick of it. Everyone knows it happens and yet the girl … the victim is always blamed for putting herself in that position.'_

 _Katie stood and started to pace the room, 'It's bullshit, Harry; why should we be held accountable for the actions of some knuckle dragging stone age wizard? How is that fair? Or right? Or justifiable?'_

' _It's not ...' was all he got out before she kept going._

' _You're damn right it's not but, we' - she pointed between Iris and herself - 'can't change anything by ourselves. We're going to need help, specifically your help, Harry.' She turned to him with shining eyes._

 _Iris took over. 'We need someone who's going to be recognised and be influential, someone who we can rally support behind to bring pressure to those in charge to change the laws so that things like what happened to Daphne don't get swept under the rug. We need a champion, Harry, and I know it's a lot to ask, and I know from what Katie tells me you hate your fame. I would too, if I was you, given the fact it came to you the same night your parents were murdered.'_

 _Katie stopped in front of him. 'But using your fame for a cause like this could ensure that scumbags like Nayden Marmias don't get away with it, it would make other boys think about what they are going to do if there are consequences, because right now, Harry, there aren't any as far as we can tell. We know that the women in the muggle world went through some sort of liberation to get these rights, but that hasn't happened yet in the magical world, at least not in magical Britain, it needs to start somewhere - why not with us?'_

 _Iris approached him, too; his head was spinning as he tried to come to grips with what they were asking of him._

' _We know we're asking a lot, you have the tournament and you're only fourteen, but we promise we will be there every step of the way, you won't be alone in this.'_

' _We will start small. We will do whatever you need us to, but please, Harry, help us change our world, you already have a platform as you're in the tournament, so getting information out through the press about our cause should be simple enough.' She took his hands in hers. 'Help us please, so that our daughters … or maybe your daughters, won't grow up in a world where men can get away with the most vile of crimes.'_

 _He squeezed Iris' hand before he dropped it and turned away from them, walked to a wall and rested his head against it. 'You're asking me to go against all my base instincts; you saw the article Skeeter wrote about me at the start of the tournament; what makes you think she will listen to anything I say?'_

' _Because your press secretaries - Iris pointed at Katie and herself - will write your speeches and give you answers to the most likely questions. I said we would be there all the way, we won't hang you out to dry, Harry,' Katie answered him in a soft voice. 'But we can't do this without you, I'm sorry to say this, Harry, but everything we want to try and achieve - all of it! -, rests on your decision, you're the only way we can make this change now that we can see. Maybe in the future we could do something … maybe, but not now, not without you, we live in a patriarchal world, Harry, and without your help we aren't going to get anywhere.'_

 _He sighed, there really wasn't a decision to be made, he could not walk away from this, to do so was to condemn every girl he knew to the possibility that the same thing would happen to them. He turned around to face the two girls; hope and worry was etched equally across their faces. 'How are we going to start?'_

 _They raced forward to embrace him, dancing around him and celebrating. Iris was the first to calm herself enough to answer his question. 'We're going to start small; we thought that we needed a symbol so that everyone knows what we are trying to change.'_

 _Katie added in an excited voice, 'It took us a while, but we decided that if we managed to get you on board we would start wearing a vivid purple coloured Triple Crescent Moon* on the left sleeve of our robes.'_

' _Why purple? Why not pink?' He asked before he could stop himself._

 _Iris cocked her head and looked at him, puzzled. 'Why would we use pink? That's a boy's colour!'_

 _Harry gave a shake of his head. 'Since when? It's always been a girl's colour!'_

 _Iris frowned at him. 'No it's always been a boys colour, just like blue is for girls!' Harry was about to interrupt her when she glared at him and continued, 'Pink was historically for boys for two reasons, firstly pink was considered pale or washed out red. Secondly because it was part of the red spectrum the dye was a lot more expensive and they, "the Lords of our World," wouldn't have wanted to waste expensive dyes on a daughter. But we don't want to choose blue because it's a colour of Ravenclaw, so we decided on purple because it's a bold colour and also the colour of royalty.'_

 _Harry gave up, this wasn't worth arguing about. 'Fair enough, do you have a design? Also, where are we wearing it and how are we putting it on there?'_

 _Katie went to her bag and pulled out a beautifully crafted drawing of the Triple Crescent Moon that was about two inches by two inches. 'We thought that the symbol of the Triple Goddess would be appropriate.'_

 _She obviously saw confusion on his face, because Katie explained; 'It represents the three stages of a woman's life.' She pointed to the left slightly downward facing moon. 'Maid. Mother.' Her finger moved to the upward facing crescent. 'Crone.' Her finger moved to the remaining crescent on the right which mirrored the first, tilting down slightly._

 _Handing it to him, Katie continued, 'As for where and how... Well, we hadn't quite got that far yet, it could be an armband, but some of the boys from the more traditionalist families are likely to get their wands in a knot and try to banish them from our arms. Potentially, once those families find out, there could be some political fallout, too.'_

 _Iris took over for her friend. 'Theoretically; Hogwarts is outside of Ministry control and regulations, but it hasn't stopped the Wizengamot over the years from attempting to subvert control, and I'm not sure how much we could count on the Board of Governors for support, given that most of them are in Malfoy's pocket.'_

' _But we'll dodge that Bludger when we have to. More pressingly is that we have been trying to add it permanently to our Hogwarts robes, but so far it won't stay longer than a few minutes. Got any thoughts on what we could use or do?' She was frowning again as she finished._

 _Harry turned and leant up against the wall before he smirked. 'Oh, I've got an idea alright,' After pausing for effect he called, '… Dobby!'_

' _Yes, great Harry Potter master sir!' Dobby popped into the room, bouncing on his feet as soon as he arrived._

 _The girls snickered, but Harry ignored them. 'I need you to add this design in purple to the left sleeve on all my robes, including my school ones, and make it so it can't be removed.'_

 _Dobby's face fell for a moment before perking up. 'Dobby can be doing this, great Harry Potter sir. But he not be able to be undoings it, sir. Dobby be has to strip some charms from Hoggywarty's robes and then adding others, but he should be's abling to be getting it done sir.'_

' _Excellent Dobby, one more moment.' He turned his attention back to the stunned girls. 'Can I offer you the assistance of my elf to get your robes done as well?' After both girls nodded their heads, something else occurred to him. 'Do you think many people will want the same done to their robes to support us?'_

 _Iris seemed to recover her wits first. 'Firstly, although you can answer this later, why in Merlin's name is one of the Malfoy house elves answering your call? And to answer your question: yes, I expect many of the girls in Hogwarts will join us once they know what is going on.'_

 _Harry laughed. 'I'll get back to you on your question; in the meantime, Dobby, can you please do the same for these girls and their Hogwarts robes, and also I give you permission to answer their call if they need you to change other people's robes. Actually little buddy, if you can sense either Katie or Iris are in danger I want you to come and get me, okay?'_

 _At Dobby's effusive nodding of his head, Harry bent down and placed his hand on the little elf's shoulder. 'Thank you Dobby, we are going to need your help, my friend, to change the world.'_

' _I's be happy to help the great master Harry Potter sir be changins the world.' Dobby gave a firm nod before his focus shifted to the girls for a moment, and then with a click of his fingers something washed over them both, before he popped away._

Daphne twitched in his arms, bringing him back to reality. Her breathing was still steady, maybe she had fallen asleep for a moment, but he could feel the tenseness in her body once more and knew that even if she had, right now she was awake again. It was a similar tension that was in her the day she returned to Hogwarts.

 _He waited at the entrance hall; she would be back soon, and given that her letters had sounded more and more morose, he had promised Daphne he would be there to greet her when she arrived. He fidgeted, he wasn't exactly sure why he was nervous, but he was aware of a tension building in him in anticipation of seeing her again; added to this were the concerns he still had regarding his magic and his body._

 _He had grown nearly three inches in the days since she had been gone and was no longer the shortest in his class group among the Gryffindors. Katie and Iris both thought that he had just hit a growth spurt, but he wasn't convinced by that, he was sure that it had something to do with what happened in the Infirmary. His magic, too, still seemed to be more active and alive within his body; it thrummed with his pulse and was almost available to him without active thought._

 _He paced back through the door and halted on the top step, allowing himself an unimpeded view as the first of the students who had left the Castle for Christmas - or Yule as Katie and Iris had called it - returned, disembarking from their carriages in groups of four or five. Mostly it was streams of first, second and third year students, but occasionally an older student would disembark as well._

 _His breath caught as he saw her for the first time in eleven days. She stepped down, holding the door open as other younger students followed her out the door. A slightly younger version of Daphne stepped out last, and Harry knew that this must be Astoria, her sister who had helped comfort her through long nightmare filled nights._

 _Daphne turned her head, and her blue eyes met his. A small smile appeared on her lips. She looked tired and pale, dark circles from lack of sleep were still visible under her make-up for those who knew to look for them. He smiled at her and was about to walk down to her, when two people pushed past him._

 _Shock registered on Daphne's face as Iris and Katie raced over to her, pushing through the crowd, shoving people from their path as they collected her in a group hug. Her eyes pleaded for him to come down, and he slowly navigated his way to the small group of witches, waiting just apart from them as Katie and Iris continued to cling to her._

 _It took several minutes before Daphne managed to disengage herself from her friends, but she had been studying his face as she did so, looking for something that he couldn't fathom. Finally she stepped forward and hugged him, her head resting on his shoulder. His arms came up on their own accord, and he drew her closer, squeezing her firmly against him, breathing in her scent as it drifted into his nostrils._

' _Thank you Harry, I don't … I want … your letters helped keep me sane. I'm sorry … that I didn't get to say goodbye, but … but my grandfather insisted … I be taken home.'_

 _He felt her stiffen in his arms at her own mention of her grandfather. A scowl crossed his face, and he pushed her back slightly from his embrace so that he could see her pretty face. Even with the signs of obvious stress she was painfully beautiful. 'Ignore him, Daphne, I promise you one way or another that Durmstrang bastard will pay for what he did to you.'_

 _She studied his face once more, her eyes searching his until she found what she was looking for and pulled herself into his arms tighter than before. 'Thank you Harry, I … just … thank you.'_

 _He heard her sniffle slightly, but before he could check to see if she was okay, another voice interrupted him, reminding him that there were other people around them. 'So it's true then, Daph said you were writing to her, but I didn't really believe her.'_

 _He tried to disengage himself, but Daphne wasn't having a bar of it; gripping him tighter her face turned into his shoulder, her body shuddering slightly. He turned his head and found himself under the aquamarine gaze of Astoria Greengrass. 'I've been writing to her, yes; it was the least I could do under the circumstances.'_

 _Astoria gave him a shy smile. 'Thank you for rescuing my sister, Mr Potter. And thank you for writing to her every day, it has taken her mind off many things whilst we were home; she looked forward to seeing your snowy white owl every morning.'_

 _She gave him a sad smile. 'Daphne was supposed to deliver a message from our father when she saw you, but I don't think she's in any condition to do so right now, so I will convey the message. Daphne has a gift from our parents, Daphne and me, for you, a Hit Wizard wand holster from our family vaults. Father said to tell you that nothing can repay the service you rendered House Greengrass, and this gift is not in any way a payment for your deed, but if you should have need of our part of House Greengrass, now or in the future, if it is in our power to do so, then we stand ready to assist House Potter in any way we can.'_

 _Daphne was quietly sobbing into his shoulder now, and he was at a loss of what to do or say to Astoria._

' _Pick her up and follow us Harry,' Katie gestured to Daphne. 'We're starting to draw a crowd, so maybe we should go somewhere until Daph's got herself composed once more.'_

 _Iris moved alongside Astoria 'Tori, you should come, too.'_

 _He looked around, noticing for the first time that more and more people were watching them; not wanting to embarrass her further and try coaxing her to somewhere else, he stooped slightly, lifted Daphne into his arms and followed the two older girls into the depths of Hogwarts with Daphne's head buried against his shoulder, rumours already racing ahead of them._

Ron had continued to sulk and scowl every time Harry had entered a room, with Fred and George quick to frogmarch him away when he looked like he was going to poke the dragon. Although Harry at times missed his first friend, the void had been filled admirably by Neville, who became the first wizard behind himself and Adrian to display the triple goddess symbol, or TGS, as Harry was beginning to call it. One of Adrian's two best friends, Adrian Pucey, wasn't far behind Neville, the symbol adorning his robes the next day. When Harry asked him about it he pointed out that he had two little sisters in first year and couldn't even fathom something like this happening to them.

The confrontation that he had been expecting from Malfoy didn't eventuate until four days after Daphne's return. By that time it had become common knowledge that Harry was not only consorting with snakes, he was actively protecting them, too. Hermione had apologised to him two days prior, but was still coming to terms with what she called the seismic shift in Harry's priorities. To her credit, she was one of the first witches to have the symbol of the Triple Goddess emblazoned on her robes after she had asked him about it, and he had directed her to Katie.

It had taken the events of that morning for Hermione to understand why he was so angry, after she had witnessed Malfoy's blatant display of his disregard of the girls of his house she would become one of his most ardent supporters once more, furious about antediluvian Pureblood attitudes to sex, sexual assault and the role of witches in magical society in general.

 _Harry surveyed the Great Hall as he waited for the rest of their usual breakfast party. It was full since classes had started the previous day; except for most of the staff, who had an early breakfast if they had a class first thing in the morning. Only McGonagall, Sprout, Vector and Babbling were present._

 _Daphne arrived for breakfast, coming to sit with him, Iris, Katie and several others at the Hufflepuff table as had become their habit. She slipped into the gap that Neville automatically opened up between them and rested her head momentarily on his shoulder. He was at a loss to explain why she gave him these sporadic bursts of physical contact, and yet she did; not that he was complaining at all, because he wasn't, it was very nice and made him feel all warm and fuzzy inside, but he really did want to know why._

 _The dark circles under her eyes had not receded, and according to Tori she was still suffering persistent nightmares which seemed to be worsening. Tori had joined them the first two mornings, yet on the third she had a furious scowl on her face when she parked herself at the Slytherin table; her expression only became more pronounced as Malfoy said something to her._

 _No sooner had he thought of her than she walked through the doors of the Great Hall, her face again a mien of fury._

' _Tori,' Harry called to her and crooked a finger to her._

 _She gave him an uncertain look, but waved her friends on and stopped in front of Harry on the opposite side of the table._

' _What's going on, Tori?' he asked her pointedly. 'What happened yesterday? I noticed that you started to come and sit with us, only to hesitate and then sit at the Slytherin table.'_

 _She grimaced. 'Malfoy ordered us not to sit anywhere but the Slytherin table, or there would be … issues. He said that Daphne and Iris would be put in their place if they continued to consort with Gryffindors.' She screwed up her face. 'I don't have a way to protect myself and my friends from his goons, so I did as I was told.'_

 _Harry looked at the other two girls who just shrugged._

' _I'm clever enough never to be caught by myself, and so what is he going to do?' Iris said._

 _He frowned at that answer before returning his attention to Astoria. 'Yes, you do Tori,' he said in a low growl, 'I am your protection for you and your friends, now sit right there next to Susan and have some breakfast.'_

 _Only the two Adrians were missing from their group, but Iris yawning slightly, said that they'd had Astronomy the previous night and wouldn't be joining them. Astoria had been seated next to Susan for no more than two minutes before Malfoy swaggered in, took one look at the Hufflepuff table, scowled and marched over to them, full of his own self-worth, and came to a stop on the opposite side to Harry. Every other conversation in the Great Hall died, even the staff focussed on them as Malfoy spoke. 'I told you three that you were no longer to sit …'_

' _Malfoy,' Harry interrupted him calmly. 'Go away and leave my friends alone!'_

 _Malfoy sneered, 'Ooh, big bad Potter, get lost, this doesn't concern you. You three are to eat at the Slytherin table from now …'_

' _Malfoy, I asked nicely, now piss off!' Harry said conversationally. 'You do not have the authority over them to tell them what to do, so tuck your tail between your legs and bugger off over to the Slytherin table.'_

' _What are you going to do about it, Potter? You have no influence in Slytherin; you have no say in how we run our house. You're nothing but some jumped up Half-Blood who everybody tells over blown stories about; if I tell these three that they are to eat at the Slytherin table, then that's where they'll eat and you have no say in the matter.'_

 _Harry saw the muggleborn and muggle raised girls at the Hufflepuff table stiffen and glare daggers at the blonde wizard, not that Malfoy noticed. Suppressing a chuckle at Malfoy's stupidity, he stood, stepped on to his seat and then on to the table, 'Malfoy, you're an imbecile with delusions of adequacy.'_

 _Harry's voice was icy, his magic was swirling around him, and his eyes pulsed, suffused with energy. 'If you or any like-minded morons actually breathe angrily in the direction of my friends, or their friends or their friends, friends, I will come looking for you and them. I will no longer tolerate bullying and harassment of anyone, especially the girls of this school.' His voice dripped with venom. 'The girls of Hogwarts are not objects or toys for you to do with as you wish.'_

 _Malfoy scoffed, but before he could say anything further, Harry's arm came up pointing at the doors to the Great Hall, his wand flicking into his hand from the Hit Wizard wand holster that the Greengrasses had gifted him. He continued his slow passage across the table wrenching his arm down forcefully._

 _The sound of tearing metal and cracking stone ripped through the Great Hall as the right side door was plucked from its frame and came sliding along the floor in a cacophony of noise directly towards Draco who hurriedly stepped backwards further down the Hufflepuff table._

 _Harry continued his sedate journey across the table, Susan and Tori shuffling sideways to allow him a path down onto the other bench before stepping onto the still moving door as it passed him, turning to face the blonde wizard, whose face had paled significantly._

 _The door slid to a halt a single step from Draco, whose eyes widened dramatically._

 _Harry glared down at the boy. 'If you think the doors to the Slytherin common room can keep you safe, think again. If you think you can bully, harass or demean the girls of this school, think again. There's nowhere in this castle where you or any other like-minded pricks can hide from me or my friends. And now, fuck off so I can finish my breakfast …' When Malfoy didn't move he clicked his fingers at him, 'Well chop, chop.'_

 _He couldn't suppress the smirk as Malfoy turned tail and fled. With that Harry turned, walked back down the door, before stepping through the same gap that Susan and Tori had left open, and back onto the Hufflepuff table. He was halfway across when he paused and looked back down at the door on the floor. With another casual flick of his wand the door slid across the room and sealed itself into the door frame, the stone work fusing back into the wall as if it never happened. Smiling to himself, he returned to his seat, picked up his piece of toast and took a bite._

' _Thank you Mr Potter,' McGonagall called down to him from the staff table, a small smirk gracing her lips. Harry just inclined his head, a broad smile on his face, and continued his breakfast as the room exploded into conversation._

Things had moved quickly after that. Hermione had bugged him incessantly about his magical strength and how it was that he was suddenly casting silently. Not that he gave anything away regarding the incident in the Infirmary; he had shrugged it off, saying that his magic was very fluid when he was angry, almost keen to do his bidding.

His training team had expanded from just him to include Daphne, Hermione, Neville, Katie, Iris, the two Adrians, Susan and Megan, although the latter two often felt slightly guilty about helping their housemate's competitor.

Cedric, however, didn't seem to mind at all when he arrived during one of the training sessions to repay Harry's kindness from the first task. Cedric had left him with the suggestion to take his egg and bathe with it in the Prefects bathroom, giving him the password of "Pine Fresh" to do just that.

Iris had intimated that perhaps Daphne should go bathing with Harry, to which they had both blushed profusely, and had been unable to look at each other for the rest of the night. It hadn't taken long for both Neville and Iris to give him the idea of Gillyweed as the best solution to the problem of breathing underwater once he had figured out the clue and taken it back to the group.

He planted another kiss to Daphne's hair and continued to run patterns up and down her spine. Her skin was soft and supple, yet beneath the surface there was hard lithe muscle, muscle she had begun to build when training him for the Triwizard tournament. Occasionally he would allow his hand to stray further south, gliding across the most beautiful derriere he had ever seen, not that he'd seen many.

To be fair, the others he had seen were by and large only accidental glimpses from when he had been taught to swim in the pool created by the Room of Requirement. He had been freaking out at having to be in the water for an hour and not knowing how to swim. Katie and Iris had promised to teach him, but the Black Lake was freezing and the Prefects Bathroom pool was little more than a couple of strokes.

It was Dobby who had come to the rescue and introduced them all to the Room of Requirement, and had been sent off with Galleons to secure a good supply of Gillyweed. Hermione had flatout refused to wear what passed as the British magical version of swimwear, luckily the room had then provided Muggle options, and she soon had a modest Muggle bikini on. Megan had taken one look and hauled Hermione straight back into the changing rooms, closely followed by the other girls to help them pick out their own. Daphne had confided in him much later that when the conversation shifted to other womens fashion, she had been somewhat mortified to find out later that the latest in witches underwear she had worn to the yule ball had gone out of fashion in the Muggle world some seventy years earlier.

Katie and Iris had taken it on themselves to teach him as they promised, and after several weeks everyone in the group had joined in these practice times. As was her habit when she got bored, Iris had fun making their other friends blush; wedgies apparently made girls scream and blush profusely, not that the boys were complaining. Unfortunately the warm water of the pool hadn't prepared him for the body numbing effects of the Black Lake in February, however.

 _His head broke the surface; the two blonde heads bobbed in front of him, thankfully facing towards the shoreline and the mass of spectators. Whilst his swimming had improved, he was glad that the Gillyweed was still in effect as it allowed him to swim far easier and with less exertion; given that he already felt like he was operating on empty this was a decidedly good thing._

 _Daphne's voice startled him. 'Harry, get her to shore and come back for me, she's at least part Veela, she shouldn't be in freezing cold water like this, it could hurt her.'_

 _Still unable to speak, he nodded his ascent and scooped the small girl up in his arms. Hugging her to his chest, he twisted on to his back and kicked hard for the shore. As soon as he had deposited the little girl into Fleur's waiting arms, he flipped over and raced back out to Daphne, who was beginning to struggle in her robes._

 _Daphne was too tall for him to help the same way, even with his remarkable growth spurt over the last two months; her legs and robes kept entangling his legs. Frowning, he dove under water and pushed against what he thought were the back of her thighs, so that soon she was being pushed through the water face first towards the crowds whilst he remained under water._

 _He felt a tightening in his chest, indicating that the Gillyweed was wearing off, but he could now see the lake floor and understood that they were close to the shoreline. When at last he could stand; he no longer had fins and he breached the surface, coughing water from his lungs as the last of the transition faded._

 _Daphne clutched his hand, and together they waded the last few yards to shore. He was exhausted, cold, wet and still stressed by the fact that he had had to fight his way out of the Mervillage with an unconscious Daphne and the little blonde girl._

 _He scowled as Madam Pomfrey dragged them all to the medi tent and started stuffing potions down their throats like they were going out of fashion; he grudgingly compiled, knowing that Medi-Witch was doing her best to look after him after all._

 _He leant back against the pillow after swallowing the last of five vile potions, allowing his eyes to close, only to be startled again when a soft, but familiar hand slipped into his own. 'You're a noble prat, Harry, you know that, right?'_

 _Not having the energy to respond, he merely rolled his head to the side and raised an eyebrow in query, eyes still closed._

 _Daphne chuckled at his antics. 'We were never in any real danger, Harry; well, at least most of us weren't, the little part Veela I'm not too sure about, but it's likely that even she was in no danger if you left her down there in that enchanted sleep, you gallant idiot.' Her tone was amused and she was almost chuckling._

' _Oh … well … at least I'm your noble idiot, right, Daph?' He wasn't expecting silence to his comment, so he opened his eyes and saw her blushing slightly. 'What?'_

' _Did you mean that?' Her voice was husky._

 _He closed his eyes once more, he was so tired. 'Well ... yeah, I mean, you're the thing I would miss the most and …' Warm soft lips stopped him in mid-sentence, warm soft lips that tasted of apple and cinnamon. He opened his eyes to find Daphne holding his face as she kissed him._

 _All his brain function had ceased; Daphne was kissing him! Before his brain processed what his body felt, she drew away, frowning at him. 'Harry, you'd better kiss me back this time or I'm going start wondering if in fact you did mean what you said before.'_

 _Wait … what had he said before? His brain short circuited again when her lips were suddenly moving against his once more. He was still unsure what to do when he heard her give a moan of frustration and felt her start to pull away a second time. No … No, no, no, that was completely unacceptable! Finally his brain made an actual decision; he leant into her kiss, following her up chasing her lips as she tried to pull away._

 _He felt her smile against his mouth and she not only deepened the kiss, but pulled him up so that he was sitting on the edge of the bed, and stepped in between his legs. His mind sung and he wrapped his arms around her, drawing her close and allowed her tongue entry into his mouth._

She hadn't let him go since, she wrapped herself in his arms when he got the judges score, giving him a kiss on the neck -which tickled- for his "moral fibre". The rest of the year passed in a blur of classes, kissing, magical practice and training, study and more kissing which escalated into snogging.

As his relationship with Daphne heated up, the only things bringing him down were the occasional snide comments by some fellow students on their choice of significant other, Rita Skeeter and her almost slanderous quill, and the amount of hate mail he received after one of those articles.

He had been extremely disappointed to receive half a dozen Howlers' from Mrs Weasley following a factually deficient letter from Ron and some of Skeeter's articles, which apparently passed for factual reporting in the Prophet.

Each time the twins winced and apologised for their mother's attitude, but Ron just sat there and smirked at him. It took the twins writing to their father to put a stop to Molly's behaviour, and Harry wasn't sure that he could ever forgive her for it.

Ginny, it seemed, was torn between being embarrassed by her mother and agreeing with her sentiment when the Howler's arrived regarding Harry's relationship with Daphne. Having never been super close with Ginny and more or less now seeing her as just the twins little sister, he wasn't overly concerned, but Daphne seemed to take great delight in ensuring that she was around every time Ginny came over to talk to him.

He'd also been busy with training - or as Daphne, Katie and Iris had begun calling it "punish Harry time" - for the third task, and minor skirmishes with the idiots who thought that he was joking about not putting up with girls being victimised. At every opportunity Iris and Katie, along with Daphne, Hermione, and Susan, had his face in the magical press, talking about the TGS group, as they were becoming known.

He had initially been very sceptical regarding the press, given his only previous interaction had been with Skeeter, but Katie and Iris had walked him through the process. Both had experienced parents they could call on; Katie's father being a solicitor, and Iris' father, Lord Parkinson, was part of the Wizengamot; the Parkinson family were far more grey in their political leanings than dark - Pansy's present opinions aside - much to Harry's surprise.

They had set up simple interviews with reputable reporters, who made the process seem like a friendly chat, and were all too happy for Harry to refer to notes if he needed. This in turn allowed him to become more comfortable with who he was as the Boy-Who-Lived, even if he still hated that name. He walked taller, angered less, and took his studies more seriously, wincing once he realised just how slack he had been before, and glad that at least his parents had never seen him so slothful.

Skeeter, though, was still attempting to run her smear campaign against him. She wrote a series of four articles claiming he was unbalanced, citing as evidence him ripping the door off the Great Hall and threatening the Malfoy Heir among other things. Not that he eventually cared one iota, once Iris pointed out that for every article Skeeter had published, she and Katie had five; one week in late March alone he was interviewed by Witch Weekly, Teen Witch Magazine, Gazette La Magique from France, Corriere de la Magica from Italy, Die Magische Zeit from Germany, De Magisch Telegraaf from The Netherlands and The Independent Magical, a newspaper based out of Denmark which had a growing reputation across Magical Europe.

It had hit the shores of Magical Britain in a splash of promotions and fanfare, declaring itself as the only English speaking newspaper with exclusive access to Harry Potter. As witches and wizards finally began to realise that factual reporting was almost non-existent within the Prophet, Rita switched tactics, claiming that he was corrupting a girl of good standing in Miss Greengrass.

Yet, by and large her articles were increasingly being relegated to the middle pages of the Prophet, as Harry's profile rose on the back of the publicity that Iris and the other girls were generating, including an interview with the Wizarding Wireless. With the downturn in negative press from the Prophet came a decrease in the number of Howlers and other hate mail directed his way.

Daphne, too, was under pressure; she had received her own hate mail as well as several tersely worded missives from Lord Greengrass to clarify her current relationship, and expressing his concern regarding her role with the TGS group, but she was firmly ignoring all his letters, and told Harry that the old bastard could go to hell.

Eventually the Prophet got on board with the TGS group as it came to light via an editorial that Barnabas Cuffe's younger sister had been abused and eventually took her own life with an overdose of potions at age nineteen. He applauded their actions and lamented his own cowardice in facing up to what his sister had been through, citing a wish not to have to confront those memories, but being forced to now, as these courageous young people shone a lamp on the Magical World's dirty little secret.

For two months after his confrontation with Malfoy in the Great Hall, Iris and Katie reported that the girl's grapevine was free of incidents involving males trying to physically coerce them into compromising positions or belittle and demean them. It wasn't until a seventh year Slytherin tried manhandling a third year Slytherin girl that Harry had to make good on his threat and show them that there was nowhere to hide in the castle.

 _Iris had seen that trouble was brewing, and when Jasper Bracewell raised his voice, she knew it was time to call for help._

' _You'll learn your place, little bitch; Potter is not all seeing and all knowing. He'll not get here in time to save you; now move your arse before I make you.' The tall seventh year stood menacingly over the chair in which his victim cowered._

' _Dobby,' Iris whispered, 'tell Harry he's needed in the Slytherin common room ASAP.' She knew that the little house elf would have heard her call and listened for what she wanted._

' _I warned you, you will respect your betters, you pathetic halfblood.' The sound of Jasper's hand slapping the cheek of Natalie Smidgens echoed through the Slytherin common room._

 _Natalie's whimper of pain was heard for only a moment before a single boom sounded, and Harry Potter appeared in the broken doorway, eyes blazing, and magic swirling around him like a maelstrom. His eyes locked onto the huddled form of Natalie on the ground in front of a cosy chair near the fire._

 _His face twisted into one of fury, eyes snapping on to Jasper who stood stock still, his arm still raised about to strike Natalie again. Jasper made a futile attempt to pull his wand, but Harry simply flicked his own Stunning Charm at the boy, which blasted him into the wall with a crack of broken bones. He stared between the crumpled form of the boy and his wand, not comprehending what just happened, before shrugging to himself and moving on._

 _A panting Daphne appeared in the doorway behind him, took one look at the huddled form of Natalie and raced to her, pulling the girl to her feet and leading her out of the broken doorway, with a shout over her shoulder of 'Call the Aurors, Harry, this is clearly assault.'_

 _Harry's answer, 'With pleasure,' was almost gleeful. 'Iris, can you check to see if that piece of shit is somewhat okay, whilst I go hustle us up an Auror or two? I will be back momentarily.'_

' _No problems, Harry,' Iris called out to him as he walked out of the room and down to an abandoned classroom not far from the Slytherin common room._

 _He sealed the door and called, 'Dobby.'_

' _Yes, sir, Harry Potter, sir,' Dobby answered as soon as he popped into the room._

' _Firstly, thank you for popping me down here so quickly, I wasn't aware that you could do that.'_

' _Tis no problem Harry Potter sir, Dobby is happy to helps, he is,' Dobby beamed back at him._

 _Harry chuckled. 'Yes, well, anyway, could you please go to Madam Bones? Ask her if she can spare anyone to investigate a case of physical assault in the Slytherin common room, also ask her for a note on what to do so that I can secure the scene for whomever she sends.'_

The problem he'd found with tearing doors down to get to the idiots who just wouldn't learn was that it led to a veritable plethora of witches throwing themselves in his general direction. This in turn led to a very cranky Daphne. She took to fingering her wand at the approach of any witch who wasn't already part of their group, and caused Harry to be on the receiving end of several Stinging Hexes from said wand when he invariably chuckled at her response.

Iris told her to stop playing around and to start marking her territory more effectively, which led to kisses from Daphne at the drop of a hat, not that he had ever complained about that. She would kiss him whenever she came into or left his presence, kiss him before meals, wrap herself in his arms whilst they were waiting for class to start and kiss him then, resulting in several threatened detentions from half of their Professors.

His hand slid down over her ribs, brushing the underside of her breast and then back across her bottom where he let his hand rest for a while. She loved it - at least that's what she had told him - when he held her there. His hand had been resting on her bottom for less than fifteen seconds when he felt her lips smile against his chest, before she kissed his nipple. He had almost fainted one day when, after a great snogging session which had involved a lot of roaming hands, she asked him why he didn't touch her bum, given that he'd already had a good feel of it in the Black Lake.

As May had drawn to a close, he had been surprised that he had only had to destroy another nine doors and put eleven idiots - at least one from every house - in the infirmary, including five who thought that because said lady went into the broom closets with them voluntarily to snog, that "No" really meant "Yes" to everything else these morons wanted. Dobby had arranged for the Hogwarts House Elves to alert him if any girl within the castle called for help.

Katie and Iris ensured that this was passed on to every girl within the school via the grapevine, along with the stern warning not to falsely cry dragon. Surprisingly, Malfoy was not among the idiots he had caught, obviously and amazingly enough the ferret had learnt his lesson in the Great Hall. Also by this time several more people had joined their group, including three more girls who had somehow managed to get around the gatekeeper in Daphne, much to her frustration.

Her friend Sophie Roper seemed to take supreme delight in teasing Daphne and making Harry blush, leading him to suspect she was somehow related to Iris. She had a wicked sense of humour, a sense of fun that was infectious and the ability to make sure that everyone was having a good time. At one point she had intimated that Harry was too much Wizard for Daphne alone, and maybe she should learn to share. Daphne had not been impressed, and Sophie had sported green hair for a week with good humour.

One day at breakfast Iris' best friend from Slytherin house in her year, Scarlett Harper, had become bored without Iris to entertain her, sat down next to her friend and never left. She was a fun loving, yet studious witch who was a self-professed bibliophile, and probably only second to Hermione with regards to raw intelligence. The debates between the two on all manner of topics were fierce yet respectful, and Harry found himself learning amazing information with no effort from them.

Katie's friend Vicky Frobisher had watched Scarlett make her way over to the group that morning for breakfast and decided that she too had had enough of not hanging out with her friend and classmate, joining them at lunch on the same day. Harry thought her reasoning was a little dubious when Vicky informed Katie that she was collecting far too many scrummy boys to be trusted and left on her own any longer. Vicky was a powerful half-blood witch with plans to follow her father into the Aurors and was a demon on the duelling piste, so much so that she was usually the first to step up when Harry wanted someone to train against.

Her father had trained his little girl well, and Vicky used those lessons to her advantage, occasionally shooting a green colour charm at him, which was used in Auror training to get used to facing the Killing Curse so that a recruit wouldn't freeze if it was really shot at them. The first time that she used this tactic against him, he froze and wore green eyebrows and hair for the rest of the day, but slowly the response of levitating or conjuring something - if he really tried - in front of it became ingrained, because as Vicky pointed out, dodging could put someone else in its deadly path.

The two Adrians other best friend Terence Higgs had also had enough of being excluded from his best mates activities and had essentially informed them that either they started hanging out again, or he was going to start hexing them; he was sick of hearing Malfoy whine in the common room that they were hanging out with Potter. He had a sense of fair play that was almost Hufflepuffish and yet was possibly the most competitive person Harry had ever met.

Justin Finch-Fletchley had slowly been drawn into more and more conversations whilst they all ate at the Puff table, which meant that he too had slowly integrated into the group; the fact that he asked to wear the TGS within a few days of understanding what they were trying to achieve also helped. His grandmother had been at the forefront of the feminist movement in the fifties, as well as having a Great Grandmother who had chained herself to the fences of Downing Street with the Suffragettes in the attempt to get women voting rights. Justin was a quiet boy until he got comfortable around people, and early on Harry sometimes forgot he was even in the room. It was much later they discovered that Justin was reserved because he was used to people in the Muggle world wanting to get close to him because of his father's titles as a member of the House of Lords.

It was Neville who dragged Michael Corner into the group. Michael, a fairly happy-go-lucky Ravenclaw, was his closest male cousin through the Black side of his family, but it was Michael who pointed out somewhat timidly that Harry was related to both them through his own Black family connection via Dorea Potter, nee Black. It may have been a tenuous link for all three of them, but as only children, any family was significant. By unspoken agreement all three of them ignored the fact that Draco Malfoy was related to each of them through a similar link.

Additional people meant that he was pushed harder in training, not that he ever seemed to tire too much, magically at least, physically was another matter altogether. He had continued to grow, and by the time of their last session a week out from the third task he was a respectable five foot nine and approximately sixty kilograms. Much to Daphne's delight, who kept running her hands over his chest, stomach, and shoulders, he was all whipcord muscle. His chest had deepened, his shoulders broadened, and his stomach sported the beginnings of a nice six-pack.

Dumbledore had been less than impressed with his antics, as he called them, trying to guilt trip him into stopping this ludicrous crusade and telling him that these incidents were only misunderstandings that could have been sorted out internally.

Harry had just scoffed at the idea and felt justifiably proud that he and his friends were making a difference to the greater magical society in Britain. All eleven boys had been heavily fined for their actions after Amelia had sprung each and every case on the Wizengamot at the last minute, often making it appear she wasn't pursuing the cases at all after the preliminary investigations had been completed, using her hand-picked squad.

Harry also refused to attend any detentions Snape and Dumbledore gave him whilst protecting the denizens of the school with his friends, unless they were served with Professor McGonagall. Using a rule virtually unknown outside of Slytherin, Harry petitioned the Deputy Headmistress, who was in charge of student discipline, and asked that all of his future detentions be served with Professor McGonagall. Deputy Headmistress McGonagall had almost snickered when Harry had presented his case to her before approving the submission.

McGonagall for her part usually took the disciplinary note, read it, binned it and then waggled her finger at him sternly for a few minutes, before sending him on his way as she tried not to crack a smile. Dumbledore had been less than impressed with his Deputy, but had no recourse as the position of Deputy was chosen and ratified by the School Board, and the rule that Harry was exploiting was in the Hogwarts charter.

Harry knew all the female staff were now actively supporting the groups work, even allowing him and either Katie or Iris on occasion to leave mid class to get to an interview by way of asking them to run an errand for them and giving them a pass to be in the halls.

The Group, led by Sophie, Vicky and Megan had started to market official TGS Group apparel, with advertisements which were now appearing in mainstream magical media. Their symbol was being worn by multiple female celebrities, including on the uniform of the entire Holyhead Harpies Quidditch team.

He ran his hand back up Daphne's side and over her ribs once more, allowing his hand to stop just before his fingers again brushed the underside of her breast, and pulled her tight against him. She gave an answering squeeze of her own against his chest. Their bed was only illuminated by fake moonlight; her blonde hair gleamed like pale silver, looking nothing like its usual honey blonde she shared with her father.

 _She took his chin in her fingers and brought his eyes down to hers. 'Harry, really, you don't have to be nervous; they just want to meet you, and besides, Professor McGonagall said that you had no one to invite. Given we're dating she thought it might be nice for me to introduce you to my parents.'_

' _Easy for you to say, honey, you're not the one dating your father's daughter. What if they don't like me? Tori said … '_

 _Daphne cut him off. 'My sister is a mischievous little bint, who's going to find herself hexed very shortly. Harry, you saved me from a rapist, they already love you for that alone. Now stop being a wimp and Gryffindor up!' She huffed. 'You are Harry Bloody Potter and my boyfriend, not some wet blanket who couldn't find my arse without a map.'_

' _I should hope, Daphne, that you are being metaphorical and not literal,' a rich baritone voice broke into their conversation._

' _Of course I meant it literally Daddy, Mum has told me all about the things that you two used to get up to in this castle, I'm after all just trying to live up to the legacy my parents left me,' Daphne said, looking impishly over her shoulder and not letting Harry escape their current embrace._

 _If he could, he would have face palmed himself; instead he just lowered his head and waited for the hexes to start coming his way. They never came. Two separate laughs reached his ears, one in the rich baritone and the other soft and melodious._

 _Daphne pivoted in his arms and then tugged his arms around her, intertwining their fingers as she usually did._

' _Won't you give your Mum and Dad a hug, sweetheart?' asked a woman who could only be Daphne's mother. Everything about her, except her hair, looked like an older version of Daphne; there were definitely little pieces of her father in her, too, but they were far outweighed by her mother's influence._

' _That depends, on whether Daddy is planning on hexing Harry for doing something to me that he did with you at the same age. I mean, that would be awfully hippocrytical of him, wouldn't it?' Daphne asked with fake innocence._

' _I told you, telling her those stories during the Ostara holidays was going to come back and bite us, Selene, but did you listen to me? Oh, no! Don't be silly Michael, you said, Daphne won't act on them yet, you said, and now apparently I have a teenage boy being actively encouraged to explore my daughters behind.' Michael stare was flat and hard, causing Harry to gulp slightly._

 _He was just about to disentangle himself from Daphne - if she let him - and hightail it from the room, when Michael, Selene and Daphne all started laughing, throwing him for a loop._

' _You should see your face, son,' Michael Greengrass said, laughter still evident in his eyes as he hugged his daughter. 'My Father-through-Bond did something similar to me the first time I met him, I'm sure it almost scared the magic out of me. He was a funny and humorous man, who went out of his way to make people uncomfortable and then laughed with them about it.'_

 _Harry wasn't sure he was laughing just yet, still trying to reconcile Daphne's parents, and especially her father, against the antagonistic and reserved Grandfather that had caused Daphne so many issues._

' _Michael Greengrass,' the tall blonde man said, coming to rest in front of Harry, his hand extended in greeting. 'My daughters have written many things to us regarding you, Mr Potter. Most of them positive, and of course we've seen you in the papers and heard you on the radio a few times.'_

 _Harry reached out and clasped the man's hand, giving it a firm shake, 'Please call me Harry. Daphne has nothing but praise for you both.' He released the older man's hand as Daphne and her mother approached._

' _Harry, this is my mother, Selene Greengrass, nee Vaisey. Mum, this is my boyfriend, Harry Potter.'_

 _Selene held out her hand palm down, a gesture Harry had learnt when Sophie had first arrived on the scene. Harry had looked at it confused before reaching out and shaking it; Sophie looked at him mildly offended before understanding passed through her eyes. 'Daphne, have you not house trained Harry yet?'_

 _He gently lifted Selene's hand to his mouth, his lips brushing the back of her knuckles before he lowered her hand and released it. 'A pleasure, Mrs Greengrass; I can clearly see where Daphne gets her beauty, and please call me Harry.' A faint blush crept up his cheeks as he delivered the customary platitude._

' _Selene is fine, Harry,' she said in her melodious voice before leaning towards Daphne using a fake whisper, said, 'I like him, he's definitely a keeper.'_

 _Harry blushed considerably more and turned to Michael who addressed him once more. 'Don't worry about it too much, Harry. My wife learnt from the best: her father, and to be quite frank, she's a bit of a tease.'_

 _Selene stuck her tongue out at her husband, claimed Daphne's arm, and walked off, proclaiming, 'Just for that Michael, I am teaching Daphne the contraceptive charm.'_

 _Daphne's cheeks flamed a bright red. 'Mum!' she exclaimed in a horrified voice._

 _Selene just winked at her daughter, and they made their way towards the door that would take them outside and down to the Black Lake._

 _Michael just chuckled and called out to his wife. 'I'm sure she already knows it… minx.'_

 _Daphne turned even redder - he wouldn't have thought that possible - and gave a strangled whine 'Dad!' She buried her face in her hands, whilst Selene just poked her tongue out once more in her husbands direction and kept them both walking._

 _Harry found himself gaping. Daphne's parents surely weren't what he'd expected._

 _Michael chuckled at his obvious confusion. 'Not what you were anticipating, I take it?' Michael asked as he gestured Harry to follow the women out the door._

' _Ahh... N...no, sir; Daphne has spoken about you both, but she... umm... didn't really give me a heads up about, well ...'_

' _Our sense of humour?' Michael finished for him as he trailed off. 'We aren't like most Purebloods, I guess, but then again, we do take our family, traditions and culture very seriously, but as Selene's father once told me not long after I had met him and much to my own fathers annoyance: "If you can't find the humour in most situations, what's the point in living?"'_

' _I'm serious when I need to be serious, but when I'm with my family, my greatest treasures, then what's the point in being serious all the time? I want my children to love me, love being with me and my wife, and have fun when they are with us, even if that means I get to or have to embarrass them from time to time.'_

 _Michael placed his hand on Harry's shoulder and gave it a squeeze. 'Life is serious enough, but it doesn't mean that you have to take it seriously all the time. It's called living, son, and I thank my lucky stars every day that my wife introduced me to it.'_

' _I think I understand, sir,' Harry replied, after taking several moments to ponder the words that Michael had conveyed to him._

' _It's Michael, Harry, and I expect that the man who rescued my eldest daughter from what I consider a fate worse than death to call me it.' Michael held up a hand to stop Harry's response and so he fell silent, 'I will never be able to repay you for what you did that night, and I know from Daphne that you do not expect payment.'_

 _Michael turned and watched his daughter and wife who were now a good thirty metres in front of them. 'All I would ask of you now is that you look after my daughter's heart, because it's already clear to me that she has placed it in your hands. It's a strong heart, like her mother's; she will protect you with everything she has, but its fragile, too, and if I was a betting man which I am not, I would bet that only you now have the capacity to break her heart and shatter it for all time.'_

 _Harry gulped, and Michael gave another easy laugh. 'It is not a bad thing to have the heart of a woman, Harry, on the contrary; it is the most wonderful thing in the world. I was about your age when Selene decided to set her cap for me. I unfortunately was an imbecile and almost completely overlooked her for at least twelve months, except for the occasional assignation in a broom closet when I was bored. I'm very lucky that my wife is a very stubborn and very forgiving lady.'_

Harry smiled as he remembered that afternoon, it had been light hearted, spent in the company of Daphne's parents who seemed to take great delight in telling Harry embarrassing stories, including one that had Daphne wishing to die on the spot and Harry laughing so hard that he swore he almost wet himself.

Apparently Daphne had at age four taken great delight in lathering up all the banisters in their house with soap stolen from the kitchens, and sliding naked down them. Suffice to say there were several photos of a very naked Daphne flying off a banister, legs flailing everywhere. Selene took great delight in describing one particular occasion where Daphne had crashed into a visiting business partner, leaving behind a sudsy bottom print on the man's robes, and she had promised to show him the photographic evidence when he came for a visit.

There were only two members of the Greengrasses that did not join them, Michael's father, Lord Dmetri Greengrass and Daphne's little seven year old brother, Jasper. As the day wore on, their friends had joined them sitting out on the bank of the Black Lake, talking and laughing and just enjoying each other's company. It was in stark contrast to what was to happen that evening in the maze and cemetery.

' _Together then … ' Cedric nodded at him and as one they reached out and took the cup. A jolt went through his body; he was caught by a hook, pulling him behind the navel. Damn, that cup was a bloody Portkey! They landed with a thump, the cup bouncing away from them a few feet behind Cedric, as they fell to the ground._

 _Straightening, he looked around, trying to get his bearings._

' _Where are we do you think?' Cedric asked him, voice quiet, as though to speak loudly was to invite danger._

' _I don't know,' he replied. He stared at some of the headstones, his breath hitched and the hairs at the nape of his neck rose. 'Riddle!' God damn it, at least half a dozen of them said Riddle! 'Cedric we need to get out of here,' he said in a terse whisper, while his eyes darted around, and he tried to determine where the attack was likely to come from._

 _Cedric looked at him with alarm, when they heard a noise of someone walking towards them. They turned in the direction of the sound and peered into the darkness. The hunched shape of a man carrying something appeared from the mist some thirty yards in front of them._

' _Who are you and what do you want?' Cedric asked in a tremulous voice, pointing his wand at the still advancing figure._

 _Harry separated himself from Cedric, side stepping a few metres to his left, opening a gap, and ensuring that they couldn't be taken out by a single spell easily._

 _The figure halted some twenty yards from them, near a small crypt, and placed the bundle in his arms down on the ground._

 _The hairs on the back of Harry's neck were standing up; something was very wrong, they shouldn't be here and they needed to get back to the school._

' _Kill the spare,' croaked a high-pitched voice._

 _The hunched figure's wand slashed up, a voice cried 'Avada Kedavra!' and a sickly green light flashed towards the two boys. Time slowed, it was a light that Harry was intimately familiar with from his dreams, dreams that still haunted him to this day._

 _He was moving before he was even aware of it; his wand was up and pulling a head stone into the path of the Killing Curse; his time spent on the duelling piste with Vicky and the others had made his responses automatic._

 _The curse smacked into the headstone, obliterating it and sending shrapnel in all directions. Unfortunately, a vast majority was ejected directly backwards towards both Cedric and himself. Cedric still hadn't moved, but Harry was closing the gap fast. He felt the stone fragments hit him and lodge themselves in his body._

 _Cedric was hit hard, but he had somehow managed to turn his body slightly at the end so that he was facing towards Harry. He cried out in pain, blood blossomed on his neck and above one of his eyes. Harry launched himself at the other boy, praying that his next desperate gamble would pay off. The top of his head collided with Cedric's nose; he winced at the resulting crack of broken bone, but ignored it as best he could. A spray of blood gushed passed him and onto the ground. They hit the ground hard, Cedric releasing an oof as the air was forced from his lungs by Harry's weight._

 _Harry was oblivious to Cedric's pain as another spell flashed over their heads, he was already pointing his wand at the Triwizard Cup as they tumbled to a stop on the ground. 'Accio Cup,' he called desperately, fear causing his throat to tighten. The cup flew towards him, and he gripped Cedric's arm tightly as the cup thunked into them. Harry wrapped his arm around it and clutched it between them, sighing in relief as he felt that hook once more behind his navel._


	4. Part 4 - A Summer of Gifts

**AN - I have said once or twice, but sometimes things need reiterating! Dorothea Greengrass has been an amazing sounding board and generator of ideas for this story. I have no doubt that without her input, thoughts, well crafted ideas and pointing out my stupid mistakes this story would be so much less than it currently is. So once more - Thank You Dorothea, Your an amazing person and I love your story "A Marriage of Convenience" it's been a pleasure to work with you on both these stories - long may it continue, my friend.**

 **A Pearl of Great Price**

 **Part 4 – A Summer of Gifts**

She felt Harry stiffen next to her; most likely he was remembering some unpleasant aspect of their time together. Unless she missed her guess, it would be thoughts about the end of the Triwizard Tournament; his mind was usually linear when reliving memories and she knew that just as she was reliving their past so was he, and even though Yule had brought them together, those memories were still particularly painful on this day. She turned her eyes to his and raised a questioning eyebrow.

'Tri-Wiz,' was the only word he whispered.

She gave him a knowing look and kissed his jaw once more before returning to her own contemplation, at least Harry's single word took her from her own pain and focused her thoughts on the end of the tournament, that in itself was a minor balm to her soul. It had taken him weeks to come to terms with Cedric's and his narrow escape, and he blamed himself for Cedric's injuries, the noble git.

Harry had tried to convince the rest of them to go home and spend time with their families; they all knew that war was coming, given what the Aurors had found when they left to investigate where the boys had been Portkeyed to.

Much of this information had been conveyed to them after the fact, but for once Cornelius Fudge had reacted like a semi-competent Minister for Magic. He had Madam Bones organise a response team, which was formed and ready to move out a mere five minutes later, but it had taken Dumbledore and an Unspeakable summoned by Madam Bones a further ten minutes to reconfigure the trophy's Portkey.

So some fifteen minutes after Cedric and Harry had been dumped unceremoniously on the stage in front of the maze, and had reported their abduction and narrow escape, the response team stood around the newly reprogramme Portkey which included the way point that had been added to Dumbledore's original one by parties unknown. Alastor Moody had been shanghaied into joining the team, bringing its complement up to thirteen - Madam Bones, five active Aurors, a squad of five Hit witches and wizards, Moody and the Unspeakable.

Skeeter had somehow got an eye witness account, complete with a photo, which the Prophet had run the next morning. It was reported the response team had arrived in the graveyard in time to see a small assembly of Death Eaters around a freshly risen Dark Lord.

The Unspeakable, seizing the opportunity before anyone else had recovered enough from their shock to react, fired a piercing hex at Voldemort's back. Unfortunately his aim from distance was off and he only succeeded in blowing a hole through the Dark Lords wand arm. Voldemort staggered, the blow seemed to have hit him hard; his knees almost collapsed and he fumbled his wand slightly before catching it in his off hand. The Dark Lord turned in their direction before he barked out an ordered for the rest of the Death Eaters to leave, telling one of them to grab Nagini, before he span on his heel and Apparated away.

In the chaos that ensued after Voldemort's flight, two Aurors lost their lives, added to this carnage three of the hit squad and a further member of the Aurors sustained serious injuries as the imposter Alastor Moody had turned on those nearest him. Only the quick thinking of Master Auror Gawain Robards had curtailed his efforts, but by that stage a vast majority of the Death Eaters had managed to Apparate away, leaving only four behind. Barty Crouch Jr, who had been impersonating Alastor Moody under Dumbledore's nose, Richard Crabbe, Thorfinn Rowle, and a very foolish and very dead Corban Yaxley.

Yaxley, who obviously believed himself to be a formidable wizard, had tried to take down Madam Bones as he attempted to move further into the graveyard and was shown exactly why Amelia Bones was the head of the DMLE. She was no quill pushing beaurocrat, she had held every position within the Law Enforcement Division - including Hit Witch - and was a master duelist in her own right.

A third Auror had died several days later; she had been bitten by a gigantic poisonous green snake that had slithered out of the long grass when they had been securing the scene. A series of combined high-powered cutting charms from Amelia, the Unspeakable and two of the hit squad had eventually taken the thing down.

It emitted an ear piercing shriek as it died that made the Unspeakable freeze in shock. The Unspeakable had immediately cast a series of charms over it, blanched white, and Portkeyed it away. He barely took the time to inform Amelia he would be sending some more people back to the graveyard shortly, before he too Portkeyed away, leaving a confused and worried Director of the DMLE behind.

The Ministry had yet to release any further information, but from what little was available, interrogations were ongoing. The Daily Prophet had released a series of front page articles, saying HE was back, and speculated on what this meant for Magical Britain. But then, after three days, as hysteria was escalating, Fudge had essentially neutered the story after a discussion between himself, Madam Bones and the Chief Editor Barnabas Cuffe.

Whilst the stories still appeared, the hysterical nature of them ceased. The Independent Magical meanwhile continued gain readers hand over fist with its balanced reporting of the issues and its willingness to truthfully call it as they saw it, giving their front page over to several editorial pieces on the issues facing the Magical World.

There had also been some pressure from certain sections of the Wizengamot to put a lid on the DMLE investigation and to curtail the activities of these foreign newspapers on British soil. They had however been stymied by Amelia Bones at every turn, who in addition to sitting her Ministry seat also sat a Wizengamot Seat as Regent Bones for the Noble and Ancient House of Bones. The most surprising thing for the Wizengamot was that she was ably and unaccountably supported by those families within the TGS group who had seats on the Court, who voted as a block for the first time.

Madam Bones had also refused to give comment to the Prophet or any other news service until she had a full picture of events. Given the lack of Death Eater activity, she had very little to report or investigate, apart from the original scene. Rumours were also rife that the Unspeakables had invited themselves into Madam Bones investigation, but as always when it involved the Department of Mysteries, no one could say for sure.

Whilst all this was happening, Cedric and Harry had been laid up in the Hogwarts infirmary for three weeks; both had large lacerations on their bodies, and they now sported a multitude of scars that wouldn't vanish, no matter what Madam Pomfrey did to them.

Cedric was the only one to have a visible scar, it curved over his right eye like a slightly jagged, pale crescent moon, approximately two inches in length. It was in such a similar position to Harry's that he took it in his stride, and told Harry he'd always wanted a cool scar of his own, given that Harry's lightning-shaped one seemed to be such a girl magnet. Harry hadn't thought that funny at first and retaliated by calling him moon-boy, but Cedric had slowly worn him down over time and had taken his new nickname in his stride.

Although the wounds would heal, the scars would not fade, much to Madam Pomfrey's annoyance. This was part of the reason why the boys remained in the Infirmary for so long, and early on were allowed so few visitors. It had taken four days before Madam Pomfrey had relented and allowed anyone other than Daphne, Hermione, Cho and Cedric's parents in as visitors; even Fudge hadn't been allowed to come in and give them their prize money until that morning.

The thousand Galleons had proved to be another sticking point between the two; Harry insisted that Cedric as the real champion deserved it and Cedric adamantly refused to take any of it, as Harry had saved his life. Their argument was into its twentieth minute when the Weasley Twins and their girlfriends Angelina and Alicia walked in, coming to see if Harry and Cedric were alright.

Harry took one look at them, thrust his bag of gold in George's arms, and said, 'Here; I'd like to invest in your business, I think we're going to need some laughs.'

Not to be outdone Cedric, threw his to a perplexed Fred with a 'What he said, after that bloody graveyard, I'm not sure I'll ever really laugh again.'

The twins looked puzzled for a moment before checking the bags, then sketched them both a salute and promised to do their best or die laughing.

It took Dumbledore reviewing both Harry's and Cedric's memories of the cemetery more than a dozen times for him to come up with a plausible answer that convinced Madam Pomfrey nothing could be done about the scars.

Harry's quick thinking had saved Cedric's life, however, the headstone had barely been a yard in front of Cedric when it was hit by the Killing Curse. Dumbledore theorised when the Killing Curse had exploded the headstone, minute fragments of the curse had somehow interacted with the stone and was still slightly active. He surmised when the fragments hit the boys in this semi-active state, with the curses magic yet to dissipate completely, that they for some inexplicable reason killed the several layers of skin, before acting like normal shrapnel as they ripped into their bodies.

Daphne wasn't sure why tiny pieces of rock with a fading Killing Curse on them would kill the skin when actually getting hit by a Killing Curse meant death without a mark. But given that this aspect of the curse had never really been studied who knew what happened when you used a physical barrier to block it and it exploded in your face? Also, as she didn't have a better theory, she kept quiet.

Madam Pomfrey had paled considerably at that thought, but had later suggested if this was indeed the case then the scars would eventually fade as the skin naturally abraded over time. She could, she thought, cut the scar tissue out, but couldn't guarantee this would allow her to fix them without other scars. Neither boy was keen on this idea and wanted nothing more than to escape the Infirmary.

' _So they are finally going to let you out?' Daphne asked, sitting on Harry's bed as he waited for Madam Pomfrey to come and officially release him from her custody. She had refused to leave on the train without Harry. Hermione had just as doggedly agreed with her to the point that the Gryffindor witch had refused point blank when ordered to leave the castle by Snape on the last day of term, stating that she would be going nowhere until Harry was able to leave with her._

 _She was also sure that Hermione had later that day - after everyone had left on the Hogwarts Express - moved herself into the Slytherin dorm with Daphne just to spite the scowling potions professor, who had left their company on several occasions since, visibly quivering in rage. Subsequently the rest of their group had decided to depart on the Hogwarts Express after watching this confrontation and deciding that Hermione had probably pushed Snape as far as it was possible to go, without him snapping. Instead they had decided to wrangled a concession out of McGonagall - who had happily complied - allowing them all to floo back via the Deputy Headmistresses fireplace to visit as often as they wanted to._

During this time two other things of note had happened; the first was a rather sheepish Ron Weasley appearing in the infirmary, just prior to the leaving feast to offer his apology to Harry. It had taken him all year to come to terms with the fact that Harry had been changed by the incident in the Winter Garden and after several long conversations with his father over the Easter Holidays - or Ostara as the traditionalists called them - he had finally come to the conclusion that he had been in the wrong.

Harry had accepted the apology and offered one of his own for his actions on that day, but the awkward silence that had followed was the best evidence that there would be no complete reconciliation, too much magic had been cast to be put back in the wand. In the end Ron had silently nodded to them both and then left the Infirmary, leaving a slightly melancholy Harry behind.

The other thing of note was Harry's conversation with Dumbledore. Harry had insisted that she was present. The Headmaster had surprised them by admitting whilst he agreed in principle with what Harry and his friends were trying to achieve, he could not condone the hard line stance that they were taking to further their crusade, he feared they were pushing too hard and too fast.

The biggest issue they still had with the Headmaster was once again his insistence that Harry return to the Dursleys for a majority of the Summer Holidays. Other arrangements would then be made for him. Every one of their arguments had fallen on deaf ears, and then he played his trump card of Harry's magical guardianship. Daphne had to clamp down hard to contain her smouldering rage as Dumbledore explained to Harry that his living arrangements and safety were part of his mandate - never mind that the old man had never made sure that Harry was protected from his so called family.

This left a visibly fuming Harry with no choice regarding his summer break accommodations, but to go back to the Dursleys. Dumbledore added salt to the wound by essentially telling Harry that he need to learn to forgive and that he needed to trust him - Dumbledore - more, with Voldemort's return they must not fight between themselves, it would only strengthen their enemies.

 _Daphne took his hand in hers. 'Stop making such a face, you big baby. We knew this was likely to happen and we've had an idea, well … actually I wasn't really involved; it was a combined effort between Hermione, Cedric and Dobby really.' She pointed with her chin to the other bed where Hermione was keeping Cedric company, debating some dubious point that the Hufflepuff had made._

 _Harry merely raised an eyebrow and gave her a questioning look, before he too flicked his eyes over to the strange pair at the other bed. Once term had let out, Cedric had no longer had visitors apart from his Mother and Father._

 _Cho, had been seen less and less as the days progressed. A running series of hushed arguments had broken out between the two, causing many of their friends to speculate that the couple was on borrowed time._

 _In fact now that she thought about it, the last time Daphne had seen Cho in the infirmary, she had been hurrying out crying. His cousin, the Gryffindor Kenneth Towler, and their mutual Ravenclaw friend Kole Turpin, had all left on the Hogwarts Express, not wanting to anger their families or teachers by remaining in the castle._

 _Hermione had joined Susan, Megan, and Justin in keeping Cedric company a couple of times, until one day Cedric had said something that sparked minor outrage in her. Since then the two had held a series of extremely humorous debates - if you were everyone else except Hermione - on a multitude of different subjects._

 _Daphne had watched as Cedric masterfully pushed Hermione's buttons to make her rise to the bait, and then somehow straight-faced managed to argue his usually outrageous opinion. Who knew Hufflepuffs had this in them? Now all Harry got when Hermione walked into the infirmary with her in the mornings was a perfunctory hello and kiss on the cheek, before she hurried off to resume whatever debate she and Cedric had left the day prior._

' _Dumbledore might be pushing you to go back to Durskaban, as you call it, but it doesn't mean you have to stay there all the time. Cedric said if you have an Elf, then he should be able to pop you anywhere you want to go and help with any chores that you have. Susan has already cleared the plan with Madam Bones, so you won't have the Ministry breathing down your neck, as Dobby is you bound elf and the Ministry cannot legally separate the two of you.' She frowned. 'I have no idea why the rest of us never thought of it, to be honest.'_

 _The first semblances of a smile appeared on Harry's face as he considered the idea. 'It's a good plan, I'm a little surprised that Hermione was partly responsible for it, though. I thought she was still going on about a millennia of subjugation and slavery regarding House Elves?' Harry asked her, caressing her knuckles._

' _Oh she is, she just happened to mention in Cedric's hearing that you had a House Elf, and he knew that we were trying to figure out how to get together over the summer, so he pointed out your Elf could virtually pop you anywhere you wanted to go.'_

' _I wonder if he could take me to see Siri ….' Harry abruptly halted his train of thought, flicked her a quick uneasy glance, raised her hand to his mouth and lingeringly kissed her knuckles one at a time._

 _Her eyes narrowed at him, she knew he was hiding something, subterfuge was not Harry's strongest point. Siri, who the hell was Siri …? Shock flooded her body as recognition flared. 'Why in the name of Morgana's dry crotch would you want to see Sirius Black?' She hissed at him, snatching her hand back from him before she lashed out and rather mildly slapped him on his shoulder. Without thought her finger started jabbing in his chest, 'The man killed your parents and he actively tried to kill you last year, you moron.'_

 _Harry cringed back slightly to stop the poking and looked away from her._

 _Clenching her fist and taking a moment to calm herself, she reached back out with her hand and turned his chin so that he was looking at her. 'Harry James Potter, you tell me why you are in contact with that madman, especially now that You-Know-Who is back. He's one of his most trusted lieutenants, for Salazar's sake.'_

' _He didn't, and he's not. He is my sworn Godfather, Daphne, he didn't betray my parents, he was set up and framed by Peter Pettigrew, the same Peter Pettigrew who helped in Voldemort's return.' Guilt flashed in his eyes. 'I'm sorry I haven't told you this before, but I didn't know how to bring it up.' He adopted an expression of fake innocence. 'Oh by the way Daph, Sirius Black is my Godfather, he's innocent and was thrown in Azkaban without a trial.'_

' _What!' Her angry yell, cut through the silence of the room, drawing the attention of Hermione and Cedric. 'What do you mean; he got no trial? That's illegal, why haven't you done anything about it?'_

 _Harry winced, but asked in a measured tone, 'And exactly what am I supposed to do about it, Daph? I don't know any solicitors or anyone in the DMLE that I trust implicitly, I …'_

 _Daphne cut him off. 'Hippogriff shit, Harry, Susan's Aunt is the Head of the DMLE, Katie's dad is a solicitor, AV's father is a Lord on the Wizengamot … Do you want me to go on?'_

 _Harry blanched and dropped his head once more. 'Sorry, I forgot … I'm still not used to having a lot of people that I can actually rely on.'_

 _She sighed, for all his impressive qualities Harry was too easily cowed, he never stood up for himself when he wasn't angry, or it wasn't for someone else's benefit there and then. She was about to ask more questions when she was interrupted by Hermione and Cedric._

' _What's going on, you two?' Hermione was giving them a curious glance, but started edging slightly towards Harry as she asked her question._

 _Before Harry could speak, Daphne answered Hermione. 'Captain Forgetful over here completely missed the point where he could have helped an innocent man by calling on the help of his friends.' At the looks of non comprehension on both their faces she continued. 'Harry just told me that Sirius Black is innocent and that he was thrown in Azkaban without a trial.'_

 _Cedric hissed, but strangely Hermione only winced. 'You knew and did nothing, either?' Daphne asked incredulously._

 _Hermione chewed her bottom lip. 'I … ughh … yeah I knew and I also forgot that we now have more friends who have influential relatives.' Her face flushed in embarrassment. 'To be honest, I stopped trying to find a way to prove his innocence when Dumbledore told us last year there wasn't much that could be done, not with the kiss on sight order in play, it wasn't like he could surrender himself and get a fair trial.'_

 _Daphne goggled at the girl. Her intellect was phenomenal, and yet she had this ridiculous need to pander to authority figures. 'Hermione, if its the last thing I do, I am going to break you of this idiotic habit of completely trusting people in authority. I have no idea how someone as intelligent as you are, can't see the lunacy in blindly trusting people just because they have an important job.'_

 _She frowned a little before continuing her thoughts, 'Dumbledore could have pushed for a trial, yes it would have put his positions of Chief Warlock and Supreme Mugwump on the line … potentially Headmaster as well come to think of it, without any significant evidence, but any trial should have validated his final position on pushing for said trial.'_

She smiled into his chest, it was a good time to be them that summer. Harry would get popped outside the wards of her house in the early morning, and they would spend the rest of the day with their friends, studying or playing, or just generally relaxing. It was decided early on that summer homework needed to be done as soon as possible, so the older members of the group helped the younger members with their summer homework whilst also completing their own, getting tips and help from any older siblings if they were available.

This wasn't the only type of help the group got, either. Adrian and Megan's older siblings Octavian ("Call me Occy"), and Sara ("Call me Ra"), also made time on their days off to help them all with their dueling and fitness training, something all of them were keen to continue, knowing what was out there now. Occy, who was five years older than Adrian and the second eldest of the Vaisey siblings, had only just completed Auror training along with Ra.

Dobby would go and collect Hermione and Justin when they were available, however, both wanted to spend considerable time with their families, which was understandable. Curiously, early on Cedric seemed to have been extended an invitation only on the days when Hermione was available.

It had taken her a couple of weeks to figure out Harry was sending Dobby to inform Cedric he was welcome to join them where ever they happened to be on that day after clearing it with their host. On the days Cedric did join them, most times his cousin Kenneth Towler and their friend Kole Turpin, who was coincidentally Megan's cousin, also came with him.

Kenneth, it appeared, took great delight - once he had been properly introduced - in flirting outrageously with Scarlett, who could evidently turn the colour of her name. He had later confessed to the boys around a campfire one night that he had noticed her across the great hall and had been trying to figure out how to accidentally bump into her for the last couple of months without appearing like an idiot . Eventually, the invitation to the three boys was made a standing one, and they appeared at whichever house the group decided to make use of that day, even opening up their own homes and hospitality.

As gregarious as Kenneth was, Kole was as quiet. The Ravenclaw, whose sister Lisa was in their year group, would happily sit back and watch the action, only engaging if he had something pertinent to say, but when he spoke hilarity usually followed, his dry wit and biting comments where a source of great amusement for most of the summer.

Of course Harry had been berated by several Order of the Phoenix members about disappearing during their watches. He had just yawned and asked them if their diatribe was going to take much longer; it had been a tiring day with his friends and he had another one planned for tomorrow. They did everything in their power to find out just how he disappeared right under their noses; including erecting Antiapparation and Portkey wards, but never found out he had Dobby Apparate him away. As a last resort, they turned to Dumbledore, "to talk some sense into his stubborn head", as Molly Weasley phrased it.

So, Dumbledore had also appeared at Number Four Privet Drive and attempted his disappointed grandfather routine.

Daphne had laughed when Harry relayed the whole episode the next day. Harry had responded with his own disappointed grandchild routine, asking Grandpa Albus - among other things he didn't get answers for - why it was that a sexual offender got smuggled out of the Castle. Dumbledore left, but not without telling Harry he was very disappointed in him. Harry, however, had got the last word in, replying he was equally disappointed in the headmaster, so they were even.

The summer had drifted by for about a month. Voldemort had been laying low, healing the wound inflicted by the Unspeakable. Rumours he was trying to recruit new followers abounded, as did small whispers that he wasn't as powerful as he once had been. Some of the more traditional families; who were still very much neutrally aligned, had reported that recruiters had come to their doors. But from what she could understand, very few were buying what the Dark Lords recruiters were selling, it appeared that most Houses were adopting a wait and see approach. From what Daphne could glean from her sources, Voldemort's new recruits could best be described as bottom of the cauldron pickings.

She grinned suddenly as she remembered the day Harry's life took a turn for the better.

' _Harry, I would have a word, if I may,' Lord Hadrian Vaisey asked him one mid afternoon as they relaxed by the pool at Alnwick House, the Vaisey's ancestral home._

 _Harry's face twisted slightly in concern before flattening out, his new Occlumency shields coming to the fore._

' _May I bring Daphne with me, sir?' His voice was devoid of emotion, but it was tight._

 _Lord Vaisey inclined his head. 'Of course you may.'_

 _Harry had offered his hand to her and helped her rise. They wrapped towels around them and slipped into t-shirts, before following Lord Vaisey into the house and to his study._

 _Daphne's pulse quickened: a Muggle bikini, towel and t-shirt were not appropriate attire for one to be wearing when they met with a Lord of the Wizengamot in their office._

 _Her stiffened posture must have been noticeable, because Lord Vaisey gave her a warm smile. 'Relax Daphne, I invited you in here knowing what you were wearing; there is no offense inferred from your state of dress.'_

 _She blushed. 'Thank you, sir, I wasn't aware that we would be coming to your office.'_

' _As always, Daphne, you may call me Uncle if you wish, and Harry, it's Hadrian to you. As my Father used to say: Lord Vaisey is some old geriatric fart, not me.' He chuckled at their choked acknowledgements of 'Yes sir,' before he addressed Daphne's statement. 'As I said before, Daphne, there was no reason that you should've known I was inviting you to my office, and therefore there as I said before there is no offense inferred, I invited you in here clearly knowing how it is that you are both dressed so please relax. But we are digressing.'_

 _He sat back in his desk chair and steepled his fingers whilst contemplating Harry. 'I find myself torn, Harry, on the one hand I have my government trumpetting that they have access to the Wizengamot sealed evidence collected by DMLE at the time of the crime regarding Sirius Black's guilt, and yet my son, my sister's daughter, and all their friends are adamant he has not committed the crimes he has been accused of because you have had contact with said fugitive and say he is innocent.'_

' _Now, the Ministry have rebuffed any suggestion that your testimony is admissible in court, as you and your friends were Confunded into believing Sirius Black is innocent. I'm beginning to have serious doubts about the information the Ministry is peddling, and therefore I am going to give credence to the information my family are giving me. So, the problem as I see it, is that we need new evidence. Is there anyway you could get in contact with Sirius and get him to the Goblins at Gringotts?'_

' _I could try S -, er Hadrian, but … er … umm, forgive me my ignorance, but to what end?' Harry asked confused._

' _Three things, actually; first have him obtain and wear the Head of House ring from his vaults; I have had my account manager do some digging and from what we can ascertain Lord Arcturus Black never officially cast Sirius from the Family Black. By wearing the ring he elevates himself to the aristocracy of Magical Britain, thus giving him rights for trial by peerage, something that the Ministry cannot gainsay. He would also technically have freedom to maintain himself under house arrest, but it would need to be documented at the DMLE, and given the kiss on sight orders for the Dementors, I don't think we will risk that option.'_

 _He ticked of his next finger. 'Two, Gringotts is neutral territory, he can under the auspices of Gringotts invite the Head of the DMLE to one of their meeting rooms and be interviewed there. If he is innocent he can request the use of Ministry controlled Veritaserum and have that testimony formally lodged as part of his case.'_

 _He held up a third finger. 'And finally, twelve years in Azkaban will take its toll on any man. The Goblins have healers who are outside of our laws, both goblin, human and others. By requesting access to their services he can be treated by expert healers and recover all whilst in the sanctuary of Gringotts as dictated by the Goblin Treaty of 1682. Unless I miss my guess, he could be entertained by the Goblins for at least a month whilst we out here try to do something about his current legal standing._

' _If you can get him to Gringotts and he can manage the rest, I think we should be able to see him freed within a month, which should be plenty of time, given what I estimate his necessary recovery time to be, for him to be in reasonable, but not outstanding health.'_

 _Harry eyed her Uncle seriously, but his eyes were suspiciously moist. 'Thank you Lord Vaisey, thank you from the bottom of my heart. However, I have one further question; what is it you stand to gain from this?'_

 _Uncle Hadrian stared at Harry for a moment before bursting into laughter. 'Very good Harry, I see my niece has rubbed off on you. In practicality nothing, but that is not to say I will gain nothing.' He held up a hand to stop Harry's next question. 'All I'm asking for is a chance to meet with the new Lord Black, perhaps just after you take him there and he claims his Lordship, but before he starts his convalescence within the Halls of Gringotts, so I can discuss with him what I will be doing to gain his freedom. I hope to draw him to our side of the political spectrum, making it easier for those of us neutrals to govern for the majority rather than few. After all, we know the rumours surrounding the Dark Lord to be true, and we have to build bridges over the trenches of Neutral-bordering-to-Dark and Light to prepare for the war that is coming.'_

For the next three weeks, furious activity was seen at all the houses of what was now loosely coined the TG Alliance. As the first week of August arrived, Lord Sirius Orion Black the third was ensconced in the Black Family seat on the Wizengamot. It had taken the combined efforts of most of the neutral faction minus House Greengrass and several other minor Houses to bully and push the Ministry into acknowledging the law and complying with the rules of peerage. Daphne's Grandfather had refused to be part of "some jumped up half-bloods absurd Ministerial conspiracy theory," and had glared at Harry when he noticed him sitting next to her at Sirius' trial.

Not that the verdict wasn't going to be a close run thing if the status quo had been maintained. From what she had been able to ascertain Malfoy and someone else, she had been unable to ascertain, had attempted to circumvent a "not guilty" verdict by pressuring and cajoling sitting members. Harry had taken one look at the evidence she had developed and spent the next four hours in the Frobisher family dueling room, destroying conjured dummies.

Only the utter brilliance of Sirius' self-appointed Barrister Nathaniel Bell derailed their actions.

As the trial date neared, Nathaniel, or Nate as he preferred to be called, finally convinced Sirius to emancipate Harry. As his magically recognised legal guardian - Harry had almost lost control of his magic when this had been confirmed - Sirius had the power to grant emancipation and allow Harry to take up his own role as Head of the Ancient and Noble House of Potter.

House Potter had previously been a Venerable Magical House - meaning that his House had only stood behind the Ancient and Most Ancient Houses with regards to prestige in magical Brittain. Nor had his House been ennobled for either services to the Crown or Ministry of Magic, and it therefore did not have a hereditary seat on the Wizengamot.

After the events of Halloween nineteen-eighty-one, the Wizengamot had eventually bowed to the significant public pressure - and had seen fit to not only elevate, but ennoble the House of Potter to a full Ancient and Noble House, granting with it all the rights and responsibilities associated with this change in status.

This elevation made Harry the first Lord Potter of the Noble and Ancient House of Potter and gave him a seat at the big boys table, so to speak. It also gave the still somewhat loosely aligned TG Alliance another vote. This was a new vote, as the seat had never been sat before, therefore no-one held a proxy for it. House Potter's vote actually shifted the balance of power within the Wizengamot further towards the centre. Dumbledore had on several occasions since his investiture tried to get Harry to see reason and change his proxy to someone of the light, but Harry had steadfastly refused.

So, Harry had accepted his seat and promptly tried to have Daphne's father sit it. Unfortunately, that was as good as placing the seat into Daphne's grandfather's hands, as he could simply demand that Michael follow his lead as the Head of House Greengrass. In the end, Harry had settled on Katie's father as his proxy; he somewhat trusted all the parents of his friends, but Nathaniel was the only one of their group at large without a seat of his own, and Harry thought it a perfect solution, given the assistance he and Sirius had already received from him.

 _Daphne shifted nervously as pandemonium reigned on the floor of the Wizengamot. With space limited in the public gallery only Iris, Katie and the two Adrian's watched with them, her clammy hand clutched Harry's, as the well dressed form of Sirius flickered into existence when he dropped the Disillusionment Spell. He had borrowed Harry's Invisibility Cloak that morning to help him find his way past security and tail Lord Vaisey into the tiers. After their arrival he had given the cloak to the Lord of Vaisey in case the worst happened and he was arrested or killed, their plan was not without its risks._

 _He was sat on the Family seat of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black, lounging with one leg lifted over one of the chair's arms, and a shit-eating grin on his still haggard face. Screams issued from some sections of the assembled members, and a couple of spells flashed towards the wanted man._

 _The innate magic of the hereditary seats flickered, and a golden dome shield flashed as the spell fire peppered the Black seat. Sirius flinched as the first two spells impacted the shield, but when it became apparent they couldn't harm him, he sat back, a smirk finding its way on his face as he watched the golden dome flicker occasionally under spell fire._

 _A cannon blast from Amelia Bones froze everyone. Her angry amplified voice rang through the court.'The next person that fires a spell will be arrested! Aurors, stun the next idiot who raises their wand.'_

 _The honour guard of twelve Aurors stepped forward and faced the tiers of power, wands raised. A single spell shot towards Sirius, and the assailant was blasted from his chair as two stunners from different Aurors hit the individual._

' _Who was that?' came Harry's whispered question._

 _Daphne narrowed her eyes, trying to identify the coat of arms on the leather high back chair. The shield was predominantly black, with four golden chevrons. Two above and two below, the three golden six pointed stars in a line._

' _Rowle, that was Lord Decius Rowle. Idiot; what did he think was going to happen once Madam Bones made that announcement?' She shook her head in disgust, some people really were morons._

 _Whispered conversations broke out everywhere as they watched the unconscious Lord being Levitated out of the chamber. Speculative looks were cast both towards Sirius and Harry, only for the owners to turn and have further whispered conversations with their political neighbours._

' _Sirius, I wonder what it is …' What ever fake platitudes or question Dumbledore had was cut off as Sirius flashed the Black family ring on his finger._

' _That is Lord Black, Chief Warlock. After all, the hereditary magics of my seat in this August Chamber would not have recognised and protected me, had I not taken up the mantle of my family. I have a sworn affidavit from the General Director of Gringotts Bank, that I, Sirius Orion Black the third, am in actual fact the recognised Lord of Ravens and Head of House Black.' Sirius stood hands leaning on the rail in front of him._

' _Let it also be known that for the first time I claim_ _Privilegium Domini_ _.' Sirius voice was calm, but icy._

' _Indeed,' said Dumbledore, and once more opened his mouth to say something, but was cut off by Fudge's screaming._

' _Bones, arrest that maniac, he is standing right there, arrest him!' Spittle flew from the mouth of the clearly agitated Minister for Magic._

 _Amelia was watching Sirius like a hawk and her attention did not waiver as she answered, 'We cannot, Minister, he has claimed_ _Privilegium Domini_ _; to arrest him goes against all the covenants of our oldest laws. He has requested judgement by the Wizards Council, and thus he shall have it.' Amelia Bones' voice was emphatic and left no room for dissention among the members of the Wizengamot._

 _Sirius inclined his head to Amelia. 'Thank you, Madam Bones, I am humbled to see that at least someone still upholds the rule of law in our fine country.'_

 _Amelia snorted. 'You, Sirius Black, are anything but humble; you're up to something, and if I think it reeks, I will look into it.' With that she sat on the Seat of House Bones, crossed her arms, and continued to watch Sirius like a bird of prey; the only indication that she found some humour in the situation was the occasional quirk of her lips into a small smile._

 _Fudge blinked, looked from Sirius to Amelia, and then to Dumbledore, who just shrugged his shoulders. Fudge scowled, but realised he had no choice in the matter, and sat down in the Minister's Chair to the right of the Chief Warlocks._

 _Sirius' smirk widened into an almost predatory smile; he gave Amelia an exaggerated wink, and then spread his arms out. 'My friends, before we start these most onerous proceedings, I hope that you will indulge me for a few more moments before you have me seat myself on soul finder or the adjudicator, whichever name you prefer.'_

 _Hushed conversations broke everywhere and Dumbledore banged his gavel, calling the Wizengamot meeting to order. He eyed Sirius carefully. 'Make it quick, Lord Black, we are not here to suit your whimsy.'_

 _Sirius nodded before seating himself once more. He raised his Head of House ring, and then with an audible click fitted it into the right arm of his seat, and twisted his hand. A glow of magic suffused the seat, and Sirius' hair moved as if caught in a gentle breeze._

 _Tension in the room amped up, and Daphne saw wide eyes on virtually all members of the Wizengamot. Some of them even looked as if they were afraid._

 _Puzzled, she turned her attention back to Sirius._

 _The cords of his neck strained as though they were now under tension, his voice, though quiet, was awash with magic; the strain of having this ancient magic flowing through his body was evident as his voice cracked and occasionally warbled._

' _Here do I swear by mouth, blood and magic,  
fealty and service to the Crown, and Magical Kingdom of the West,  
to speak and to be silent, to come and to go,  
to strike and to spare, to do and to let be, in matters that concern the good of the people of this fair and righteous Kingdom,  
on my honor, magic and the lawful commands of the Crown,  
in need or in plenty, in peace or in war,  
in living or in dying from this hour henceforth, my wand will be ready,  
until the rule of law depart from this throne,  
may pain illuminate my path, death take me, the world end or my magic be forfeit should I stray  
so say I, Sirius Orion Black the third, and upon my magic, my life and my soul be it.'_

She smiled at the memory, the oath, found and identified by Nathaniel. The last time it had been used was in the fourteenth century as the country recovered from the reign of a particularly loathsome Dark Lord. This cut the legs from both Malfoy and the other unidentified party; as by giving this oath of service Sirius had ensured anything he spoke within the Wizengamot had to be taken as gospel, his oath would cause him pain on a rising scale, if he attempted to speak anything, but the truth when dealing with the official business of the Wizengamot within the chamber. Should he attempt to outright lie to the court, he would either forfeit his magic or die.

The other side of the coin to the oath was that no member would be able to speak false when asked a question by the new Lord Black. Unfortunately, the easy way around this was a proxy who was not held to the same standard for some unknown reason. This was the reason why proxies within the Dark Families became all the rage soon after the oath had been introduced in the eleventh century. When the oath fell out of favour, so did the proxies. It remained to be seen if Sirius' use of the ancient oath would bring a new surge in the use of proxies.

In that light the magical public would hang, draw and quarter the esteemed members of the Wizengamot should it come to pass that any shenanigans be evident with regards to the final verdict in this case, and with Lord Black requesting an open trial. The Lords of the Wizengamot had their hands effectively tied, considering the media attention both at home and abroad.

Surprisingly, Sirius had also allowed the use of Veritaserum, once he had assurances that only Madam Bones would question him, and that questions would be confined to those regarding that Halloween and the Potters. In the end, the members of the court found him not guilty in a vote of eighty-four to sixteen. Malfoy's gold and threats had apparently still managed to reach some, but not all of the darker families. There were rumours afterwards that it was Dumbledore who had tried to influence many of the lighter families, but there was no significant evidence of this and it appeared that whatever he had attempted, it seemed to have fallen flat, and no one was talking.

 _Daphne struggled to control her smile as she watched Lucius Malfoy fume from another of the visitors tiers. If looks could kill, Sirius Black would have spontaneously combusted as he lounged in the Black family seat; occasionally he would catch the eye of one of the other Lords and would give them either a genuine smile and nod or a smirk._

 _The rest of the morning session was remarkably boring; a couple of minor cases of criminal activity and a civil case took up the rest of the time, by which time she and Harry had both been yawning and in danger of falling asleep. A quick lunch in the chamber dining room with Sirius, Lord Vaisey, Lord Roper and their other friends, had managed to pepper them back up._

 _Sirius had just about hugged Harry to death when they had first entered with her Uncle Hadrian; it was one of the happiest memories she had of that summer. She wasn't spared at all from the Sirius experience, as he called it, given that by the end of lunch she doubted she had any blood in her body that wasn't causing her face to blush in embarrassment. Harry adding that she was very pretty when she blushed hadn't helped spare him from the torment, either._

They left before the afternoon session started and Flooed back to Huntsmoor Manor, the ancestral home of the Frobisher's, where all the rest of their friends had gathered to hear the news. The apprehensive faces of their friends greeted them as they stepped into the Vaisey's receiving room. The broad smiles on their faces delivered the good news before they could even open their mouths, and soon shouts of joy and triumph sounded throughout the room, and Butterbeers were being dispensed liberally as they filled everyone in on what happened.

She couldn't help the smile that spread across her lips as she remembered the rest of that summer. Sirius, upon being free, left no stone unturned to ensure that Harry and his friends had the best summer ever. For three weeks they and their families had an open invite to spend time with Lord Black and his godson on Black Island. There had been so many places to explore and be on their own that it had only taken three days before Harry got his first proper introduction to the girls, even if it wasn't originally by her design.

 _She blinked herself awake; sun streamed through the window of the room she shared with Katie, Iris and Sophie. There were plenty of rooms in the former plantation house, but the girls had decided that sharing a room would be so much more fun, which resulted in long nights of giggling, talking and blushing. Daphne and Iris had serious boyfriends, but Katie and Sophie had yet to snaffle the boys who had caught their interest, not that they were really trying, at least in Iris' opinion._

 _Katie, through no fault of her own, especially early on often found herself in the other Adrian's company, just because he was AV's best friend. Daphne had noticed that they often found themselves paired up when practicing spell work or homework, as Iris would work with AV, given that Harry and herself were obviously a year behind the others it was only natural._

 _It had taken the combined efforts of Iris and Daphne to drag the truth out of Katie, but she eventually admitted she had come to find the quiet, yet confident Adrian Pucey or AP as he was called, quite appealing. Iris was continually telling her to woman up and just sit on his lap and snog him into submission, afterall, it had worked for her and AV._

 _AP appeared to enjoy Katies presence, but whenever Iris sounded him out or mentioned setting him up with one of their friends, he baulked at the idea, saying he was waiting for the right girl. Daphne suspected that the right girl was in fact Katie, given that his eyes would ghost to her friend quickly everytime the subject of a girlfriend for him would come up._

 _She was sure that Iris had seen the same thing and was the reason why she was so adamant that Katie should just woman up. Katie steadfastly refused to believe them, commenting numerous time she was sure the pair of them were making it up as she had never seen AP do anything of the sort. Maybe Sophie's idea of locking them in a broom cupboard when they got back to Hogwarts had merit._

 _Sophie was a different matter altogether; at one point during the summer, she had started to notice as the baby fat started to fall off Neville Longbottom. Unfortunately for Sophie, she wasn't the only one to notice, with both Megan and her cousin Lisa Turpin (who was becoming exceedingly good at getting invited along by both her brother or Megan to wherever they would be for the day) noticing, too, specifically as they lazed around the new pool at Llanerchrugog House, the ancestral seat of the Jones family._

 _Sophie had taken a leaf out of Daphne's book, getting Neville used to physical contact from her by starting water fights in the pool, jumping on his back and generally ensuring that she asked him to rub Sunscreen Potion on her back, or asking if he wanted something to eat or drink._

 _So far it seemed Neville didn't know what to make of this attention from the playful and beautiful witch, but Daphne was going to get Harry to sound Neville out about his feelings for her friend today, if it was the last thing she did. She put on her emerald green bikini, the one she'd bought because it matched Harry's eyes, and wriggled her way into a pair of frayed denim shorts._

 _When Hermione had first given them to her in June as a very belated birthday present, she'd thought that either Hermione was playing a prank or she had wrapped up the wrong shorts by mistake, given that the legs were frayed and quite short. Hermione had just laughed and told her they were the latest muggle fashion, and that she was welcome and that she would take books in lieu of payment for helping with Daphne's lovelife._

 _She'd scoffed at Hermione's suggestion that the shorts had superpowers that would enthral teenaged boys, but she was woman enough to admit when she was wrong. And Merlin! how she had been wrong; Harry's eyes had almost popped out of his head when he first saw her in them. The effect hadn't seemed to abate much with each additional use, and without doubt she'd come to love the look in his eyes when he saw her in them._

 _She was grateful they were loose enough on her lower waist, given she was nearing her moon days, and her stomach felt a little sore and bloated. She would take a moons-bane potion at breakfast, and that would deal with the cramps, the pain and the rest of it for most of the day._

 _Deciding that long-sleeves might be advisable, she grabbed one of Harry's old school shirts, which she had liberated from his trunk, and put it on. She rolled up the sleeves, but left the shirt open, except for knotting the bottom loosely around her waist, and finally pulled on a pair of shoes named after a greek goddess that were made of white mesh with orange and purple on them._

 _Harry was already at the breakfast table, waiting for her, a seat next to him empty which she claimed, giving him a quick kiss good morning. His eyes fogged when he noticed her outfit, and she got that look again, a compliment without words if you looked at it right._

 _Harry was dressed in emerald green and grey board-shorts that hung low on his hips, an open short sleeve grey shirt, and was for the moment barefoot. The shirt showed his developing body nicely, and the low shorts flashed the band of his CK underwear and hinted at what was beneath his clothes._

 _She chewed her bottom lip slightly as she let her eyes drink in the sight of her boyfriend, before realising that she was staring, and started gathering her own breakfast, thanking the gods that no-one seemed to notice her short period of decreased cognitive function._

 _Announcing at breakfast that Harry was taking her exploring the island for the day almost proved to be her undoing when Harry looked at her in confusion, before a kicked shin and pointed look got him to confirm their plans. She really needed to work with him in regards to subtle hints! She was just about to start eating when Sirius piped up._

' _Don't let Harry explore too much, Ms Greengrass, there's a lot of virgin territory out there, and I don't think he has a very good sense of direction, he's only almost fifteen after all.'_

 _A deep blush of scarlet crept over her face, and she couldn't look at Harry, so she steadfastly kept her eyes on her plate. She had just about managed to get her face under control when her father spoke up._

' _Do you think he needs a map, Sirius? Daphne did comment the first time we met your godson that he could find things without a map, but maybe it was only certain things. I am sure that Selene could help with that; she was always excellent with things like TOP-ography.'_

 _Before answering Selene gave her a long appraising look, that ended with a small understanding smile. Her mother was well aware of the lengths Katie and Iris had gone through to ensure they helped Daphne get over the trauma from the incident._

 _Hermione had secured books from the Muggle world on counseling, and they had made her talk. As they pulled information from her, it had felt like they were squeezing a festering wound to excise the pus from within. It was painful, difficult and bloody work, but they had helped her realise she had to face what had happened to truly get back into her life_

 _They had also treated her normally; slowly and carefully at first, Iris had begun teasing her again, Katie playing the straight woman to perfection, and she had made progress. A laugh here, a sarcastic comment there, until about a month after her return to Hogwarts she had inadvertently made a comment about Harry's bum. Iris had seized on that comment and had wheedled, poked and prodded until Daphne had to admit that yes, she found Harry attractive, but it scared her to death … what if the same thing happened with Harry?_

 _She knew she was being illogical, but knowing that she was, didn't help. She felt safe in Harry's arms, but would she still feel safe if their relationship changed? It had taken right up until she woke up in the lake to realise that she needed to start trusting boys again - or more specifically, one boy in particular. Harry had never once done something inappropriate, and he had continually watched out for and protected her; if she couldn't trust him then whom could she trust?_

 _Even more importantly, she'd hate to lose him; the glances other girls gave him ever since the morning he took Malfoy to task hadn't gone by unnoticed by her. She was lucky Harry was such an adorable, oblivious idiot when it came to the fairer sex. However, even Harry wouldn't stay that naïve forever, so she'd better start marking her claim._

 _That kiss in the medi-tent had almost cost her every bit of self confidence she had, especially when he didn't kiss her back, only the dazed look in his eyes had allowed her to screw up what little courage remained and kiss him again._

 _She knew that her mother would take all this into consideration and so she returned a tentative smile of her own, letting her know that she was okay with the teasing, and that she was finally ready to be treated normally once more. Yes, there were still some cracks, but by and large most days she hardly thought about that event anymore. Her mum softened the hammer blow with another smile and a wink._

' _That's an excellent suggestion Michael, maybe Daphne can help Harry mark out the peaks on the island; from what I could see when I have looked from the balconies, I'm sure there are at least two nice sized peaks quite close to hand, that could do with an inspection from up close,' Selene quipped. 'What do you think Harry, think you can help Daphne map out the lay of the land? I'm sure she can help you reach some of the_ _ **hard**_ _to find places?'_

 _Well, maybe she wasn't quite as ready for this as she thought. She hadn't known her face could become any hotter than when Iris really got going, but obviously she was mistaken. A loud thump made her raise her flaming face; Harry was banging his head against the table, his cheeks as crimson as hers. She groaned, lowering her eyes to her plate once more, and took a determined bite of her breakfast. This was going to be a long meal._

 _By the time they left the table both of them had been blazing red and mortified, even Tori had gotten in on the action, adding a couple of embarrassing anecdotes from her childhood. The fact that this was perpetrated in front of not just Harry, but all her friends meant that her payback was going to have to be of epic proportions. She was seriously considering taking out a full page add once she figured out who her little sister was crushing on._

 _But at least they were all having fun, the holiday had very nearly not gone ahead. Her grandfather had thrown a fit when her father had informed him of their plans. Disinheritance had been mentioned, but as her father had explained later to Sirius and Harry, it was an empty threat. He was the sole remaining son of the Lord of Greengrass, since his youngest brother died in the last years of the war, caught in Diagon Alley at the wrong time, and his oldest brother and family died during the Dragon Pox epidemic that had claimed his mother in the late seventies._

 _She and Harry had almost fled from the house. The sun was bright, warm, and fairly high in the sky when they decided to stop for lunch in a small cove. Tree lined cliffs surrounded them, reaching out into the ocean which broke on a reef further out, and allowed only small waves to lap at the pristine white sand._

 _The beach itself was less than twenty metres in length at its widest point and and half that in width, with a few largish boulders that had broken off from the surrounding cliffs littering the sand. Light azure blue water glinted in the sun, tempting them to strip off and run into the water to splash each other._

 _She spluttered, coming up from under the water where Harry had just thrown her. 'Harrrryyy!' She glared at him, splashing more water in his direction. 'What was that for?' Her hands went automatically to her hips, but she was sure that her impersonation of a drowned rat wasn't at all intimidating._

' _You looked like you were a bit hot, so I was trying to help you cool off,' he replied,_ _with false sincerity in his_ _voice, and a smirk on his face._

 _She glowered at him, closed the distance between them and tried to wrestle him under the water. Unfortunately, "tried" was the operative word. The infuriating prat just stood there and allowed her to attack, before he captured her again and tossed her back in the water._

 _She surfaced once more, fuming, and already planning her next attack. She wasn't a Slytherin for nothing; this time she considered her options and then sprung her attack at his legs. Her victory was unfortunately short lived; she brought him down, but he scooped her up again and dragged her down with him._

 _They kept wrestling playfully for a good five minutes when Harry suddenly went white, stared at her chest for a few moments, gulped and then spun around and faced out to sea with his eyes screwed tightly shut._

 _Confused, she jumped on his back and asked, 'Harry, what's wrong?'_

 _She heard him swallow, before he answered, 'Umm your top, I... ah ... well, that is ... I think its broken.'_

 _She slid off his back, and immediately understood as her nipples slid down his skin, causing the most exciting and terrifying feeling she'd ever had. A small gasp popped out of her mouth and she attempted to ignore what that slide down his back had done to her insides; instead she set about trying to assess the damage to her bathing suit._

 _She was part way through her adjustment; the bikini didn't appear to be broken, merely shifted and twisted a lot due to their vigorous play, something she hadn't noticed as she was concentrating on bringing Harry down. The lady at the store had told her that this particular model wasn't great for anything other than a gentle swim and sun bathing. Now she grasped the full meaning of that warning. She was still trying to reposition the left cup, when Harry spoke again in a dejected voice._

' _You know, Daph, I'm really sorry, I didn't mean to look … I'll understand if you want to leave … '_

 _She stopped what she was doing to look at her boyfriend, trying to understand what the hell he was thinking about. Sighing in exasperation, she continued to fix her top whilst trying to set his mind at ease. 'So you shifted my bikini top on purpose, then?'_

 _Harry stiffened and stuttered out indignantly, 'What … no … of course I didn't.'_

 _She shook her head, he was an idiot. 'So you accidently saw my boobs and what you think is I'm going to break up with you … is that it?'_

' _But … but I was staring at …' He obviously struggled to find the right words and waved his hands in some sort of gesture in front of him before capitulating and continuing with, '… them, Daph. I didn't mean to, but I couldn't help it.' Harry hung his head in shame._

 _Rolling her eyes before going back to her task, she continued absentmindedly, 'It was an accident Harry, an accident.' How the hell did this thing get so twisted, she thought to herself, still at a loss to figure out exactly what had happened to the bikini top._

' _But Daph, I saw your body without your permission,' Harry answered in a dejected voice._

 _Giving up her attempt to untangle the damn thing in-situ, she reached up and untied the neck ties, knowing that Harry wouldn't turn until she gave him permission. She set it to float on the water as she assessed the damage. The pads that stopped her poking someone's eye out when the water was cold had shifted in both cups, somehow twisting everything up. Her tongue was stuck out in concentration, as she tried to wrangle the offending pieces of material back into position._

' _I should just go … shouldn't I ... ?' Harry's voice was so soft and broken that she nearly missed it, apparently whilst she was concentrating she hadn't spoken to him for a while._

 _She stopped what she was doing and stared at his back. Why was he talking about leaving? She answered him. 'Don't be an idiot and stay right where you are, if you leave, then we are going to have words, we already agreed that this wasn't your fault.'_

 _She was about to go back to her task when she saw his shoulders slump even more. For all of Harry's good points, and there were many, he had no confidence when it came to their relationship. Whilst he let her choose the speed at which their relationship progressed and she was eternally grateful for that, she sometimes wished that he would take control occasionally and act within those boundaries. Was it too much to expect him to pull her close and snog her socks off, or pull her into his lap and snuggle with her? She knew after talking to Katie and Hermione that he was waiting for her to realise that he wasn't good enough for her._

 _She needed to reassure him that even though he'd inadvertently seen her boobs, it was okay and she didn't hold it against him. Her fingers had been working on their own and as she finally got her top back in order, a really bad idea struck her. A really bad idea that Iris would think was inspired._

 _But could she really do it? Her heart had sped up considerably already at the mere thought. The arguments against the idea piled up quickly. Could she trust him to respect her boundaries? Would his hormones take over and make him a grabby monster? She was here on her own, no-one would rescue her this time! What if he didn't like what he saw? She wasn't as big as some of their friends, would that make a difference to him? Would he be disappointed?_

 _At the same time she shot each and everyone of them down, this was Harry, the most honourable boy she'd ever met! Honesty and sincerity fair oozed of him. If she couldn't trust him, then there were no boys she could trust. He wouldn't become grabby, he'd most likely faint from shock._

 _And the real kicker was that in that moment she realised she wanted to have a normal life. Moreover, she wanted a normal love life; she wanted to be more intimate with Harry and get to know his body as he got to know hers. She didn't want that Yule Ball to rule her life anymore, she wanted to move past it, she wanted to put her trust in Harry and knew he wouldn't let her down._

 _Her heart was almost thundering in her chest as she made her decision to take back complete control of her life … Maybe that was why her mum had winked at her before joining in the teasing, was she giving her silent approval and a sign that she thought that Daphne could trust Harry completely?_

 _Decision made, she acted, it wasn't only Gryffindors who could be brave when they had to be. 'Don't you dare move a muscle Harry Potter,' she commanded as she pulled the rest of the top off and waded to the shallows, throwing the item above the wave line, before steeling herself and turning back towards her boyfriend._

 _When she could she sank underneath the gentle waves with only her head showing and paddled herself out to where Harry was standing in hip deep water, her pulse booming in her ears. 'Move out until you're up to your chest and then close your eyes,' she instructed him as she grabbed onto his forearm, allowing him to pull her through the water. Her heart raced even faster and her stomach tied itself in knots as anticipation and fear warred within her. Was this a big mistake? Was she going to regret this for the rest of her life as well?_

 _All too soon Harry stopped moving and suddenly her mouth was so very dry. 'Are your eyes closed, Harry?'_

 _He nodded, so she released his arm, swam around to his front and hugged him, pulling herself tightly against his chest and wrapping her legs around his hips, she was shaking from nerves as she pulled their bodies together. She felt him stiffen slightly in her arms. Her stomach was a roiling knot and it took three calming breaths before she could speak the words that might define her future, 'Look at me Harry.'_

 _He opened his eyes, eyes that couldn't hold her own, they flicked down to her chest, before they goggled and he forced them away, looking over her shoulder and out to sea, his body turning even more rigid._

 _She felt a stab of panic as his eyes left her chest, but forced it down. This was just Harry being noble not him rejecting her, 'I said, look at me Harry.' She grabbed his chin with her right hand and forced his eyes to meet hers, 'What happened before was an accident, do you understand, an accident; the lady at the shop warned me that something like that might happen, but I bought the bikini anyway, so if there is any fault here, it's mine.' She sounded far calmer than she felt._

 _Silence._

' _Do you understand me?'_

 _He only nodded again._

 _With another steadying breath she continued, 'What I am about to do now is not an accident, this is me taking a leap of faith that I can trust you, Harry, my boyfriend; this is me taking control of my body and sharing it with you, do you understand me?'_

 _He nodded again, but she wanted to hear his voice. 'Say it out loud, Harry,' she requested, her heart still pounding away in her chest._

 _He croaked out a 'Yes', his eyes shining with awe and slight panic as he comprehended what she was planning on doing._

' _Good, then turn around and follow me out of the water, but no touching, I don't think I am ready for that yet,' she said as bravely as she could manage._

 _As he spun them on the spot, she pushed away from him, separating them by about three or four metres. He stayed still until she found her feet and started to slowly move backwards, step by step she rose from the water. She felt a blush start to form on her cheeks, but she held her head high and continued to watch him as more of her body appeared._

 _He stared at her with a reverence she had never seen before, as though he was unwrapping the best gift he had ever received. She felt the water drop away from her breasts completely and she stopped once she was in thigh deep water._

 _Relief flooded her system when as soon as she came to a halt so did he, his lower body still immersed in hip deep water, eyes locked on to her own, 'You're supposed to be looking, Harry,' she told him with a small smile, amazed that she could still speak so calmly when she was such a mess inside. A cool breeze pebbled her nipples as Harry's hot gaze swept over her._

 _After a couple of false starts, his voice broke several times before he finally squeaked out, 'You're beautiful, Daphne, so very very beautiful … I … wow … thank you for … well you know.' A blush had quickly engulfed Harry's face, matching what she was sure her own face looked like. She beckoned him forward with a crooked finger. She watched fascinated as the rest of Harry emerged out of the water, revealing a very visible sign as to just how much he appreciated the gift she was giving to him today._

 _Even more, it also pressed home the fact she could trust him completely when it came to her boundaries. Which fifteen-year-old, hormone crazed boy wouldn't at least have tried to wheedle her into some more exploration?_

 _Harry Potter, that's who._

 _The tension left her body, and a giddiness overcame her, followed by a blinding realisation. This time, she'd put her trust in the right boy, she'd continue putting her trust in him and she would see where it would lead them._

 _Her eyes dipped down to his groin again on their accord and a giggle welled up in her at the sight of the peaked tent in Harry's trunks. Harry blushed further and halted in his tracks, when he noticed what she was looking at, which only made her laugh harder as she wondered which part of his anatomy would win the fight for blood. He blushed even harder when she explained what she was laughing at, but eventually gave her that crooked smile and just shrugged. That relieved some of the awkwardness of the moment and he moved forward once more closing what was left of the small gap between them._

 _He stopped, a small step from her and reached out with hesitant hands to cup her face. His voice once again betrayed him, warbling and cracking, 'I don't know the words to express how I feel about you, Daph, all I can say is thank you for your trust.' She beamed at him and with that he lowered his lips to hers and kissed her deeply, as she wrapped her arms around him pulling their bodies close and marvelling at the touch of his skin on hers._


	5. Part 5 - A New Kind of Normal

**A Pearl of Great Price**

 **Part 5 – A New Kind of Normal**

 **AN - As I have said repeatedly Dorothea Greengrass has been an amazing generator of ideas for this story. She may have changed jobs, gotten even more responsibility and made it to the very top of her profession (my heartfelt congratulations to you Dorothea), but she has still found the time to troll through my pitiful first draft multiple times and keep me on track. I want you to have no doubt that without her input, thoughts, well-crafted ideas and pointing out my stupid mistakes this story would be so much less than it currently is. So once more - Thank You Dorothea, you are a genuinely amazing person and it's been a pleasure to work with you on our stories - long may it continue, my friend.**

\- APOGP - After a few comments this is my attempt at Past and Present Delineation (I hope that they make the reading easier and that I got them in the right places).

She sighed and shifted her position in their bed once more, her glance falling on the luminous dial on Harry's watch as she did so. It was three thirty in the morning, high time for her to sleep. She sighed, that was unlikely for a little while yet, and her memories had their hooks in her now and weren't going to let her go easily.

With another frustrated breath she pulled Harry's arms around herself until she was sheltered in his embrace and snuggled her back against his chest. His semi aroused member pushed against her bottom. She was no longer embarrassed by his reaction to her body, no, she was flattered by the fact that by merely being in his arms his manifest attraction to her was so evident, even if it was a purely physical response.

She reached a hand in between them and shifted him to a far more comfortable position between her bottom and his lower belly. Harry barely registered her action, apart from a small pulse in her hand, he was so used to her doing that so that they could snuggle in the mornings. A smile worked its way on to her lips. They had come a long way in their relationship that he was so comfortable with her touching his body. She could touch, move or shift him into whatever position suited her best if the mood struck her.

This wasn't a one way street anymore though, she had felt the thrill of Harry taking charge of their bodies, whether for sleeping and pulling her into whatever embrace he desired at the time, or for other much more interesting activities that may or may not include a bed. She could easily remember the first time they had shared a bed; her face fell as the memories of that early August evening came rushing back. It had been anything but thrilling.

\- APOGP -

 _'Mistress, Mistress, you must comes quicks, Master be's needing you. He is just be's finding outs that his alertly wards at's the nasty house has beens tripped.' Dobby's insistent tug on her hand caused her heart to skip a beat, then race as images of all sorts of terrible things that could have happened to Harry in the three minutes since he had left her company from Cedric's house and travelled to the Black's newly refurbished Corbenic House in Clwyd, flickered before her inner eye._

 _She had just been about to take her own leave via the Diggory's Floo when a frantic Dobby had popped back and tugging on her hand to go. Her mind was spinning horrendous idea after idea, until Cedric took her other hand together with Hermione's in his and spoke to Dobby._

 _'Can you take us all there now, Dobby?'_

 _Harry's little elf bounced his head in the affirmative, and the next moment that familiar squeeze and then confusion as Dobby took them from Ottery St Catchpole, Devon, to Little Whinging, Surrey, in seconds. She staggered on arrival as the little elf's knees buckled beneath him. With a shaky hand the elf pointed inside the house. 'He is being in there.'_

 _Cedric was moving as soon as Dobby had pointed, wand out. The door was wide open, but no sounds were emanating from inside. Hermione was hot on her heels as she followed Cedric into the kitchen, an arm barring her way as he stopped suddenly._

 _She looked past him, seeing a woman's beige shoe with a sensible heel lying alone on the kitchen floor. Cedric signalled them to be quiet, and they crept past the shoe and into the lounge where a scene of devastation awaited them. Every piece of furniture was turned over, except one, which held the large, unmoving, but still breathing body of a man._

 _A woman sans one shoe was against a wall, her body having slid down so that her right cheek was on the carpet. Unseeing eyes gazed forward; Daphne would have sworn she was dead, if it wasn't for the fact the woman was breathing._

 _A third body that of a large, rotund boy, was laying on his back slumped across what Daphne now knew as an upended television. She took all this in at a glance, as her eyes sought frantically for and found her boyfriend, who was sitting against the hallway wall, banging his head against the wall, muttering over and over that this was all his fault, he should never have left the alert stone behind._

 _She bolted forward and tried to clutch Harry to her breast, before managing to scoot him forward so that she could rest his head against her chest, and ran a soothing hand through his hair, whispering into his ear that it was going to be okay._

 _She didn't know how long she sat there, trying to comfort her boyfriend, before Harry's broken eyes finally looked into her own; others arrived in the lounge room, but she paid them no notice._

 _'Daphne, what are you doing here?' he asked in a hoarse whisper._

 _She climbed out from behind him, pushed him back against the wall and sat on his lap, facing him. 'Looking out for my boyfriend. This is not your fault. You hear me, Harry Potter, this is not your fault.'_

 _He averted his eyes and withdrew into himself once again. Damn it, he didn't believe her in the slightest. She pulled him to her and kissed him as hard as he could. When she was out of breath she pulled back and looked him in the eyes again, using her hand to keep his eyes focused on hers as he went to look away. 'Harry this isn't your fault, you weren't here. What ever happened was outside of your control.'_

 _Their moment was broken as Amelia Bones knelt down beside them. 'I'm sorry Harry, but there is nothing we can do for your relatives; they appear to have been subjected to a Dementors Kiss, but we will …' the rest of her sentence was cut off as Albus Dumbledore arrived in a flash of flame with his wand out._

 _The Headmaster took one look around at the multitude of people. 'What are all you people doing in Harry's home?' he asked in an authoritative voice._

 _Amelia had taken charge of the situation, leading Dumbledore further into the house and explaining what had occurred._

 _She continued whispering soothing words into Harry's ear, whilst continually running her hand through his hair. Harry's face scrunched up, he leaned against her and sobbed into her chest. They still sat like that when Dumbledore came back._

 _'I need to speak with Harry alone, Miss Greengrass. Please move and give us some privacy.' His tone didn't tolerate any objection._

 _Harry clutched at her back, tightening his grip on her body. She gave Dumbledore a hard stare. If he thought she'd leave Harry in this situation, he had another thing coming. 'I'm sorry Headmaster, but I will not be leaving my boyfriend's side tonight._

 _'Miss Greengrass, it is imperative that I speak to Harry alone, I have information for his ears only. Now please, move!' Dumbledore's voice was sharp._

 _Harry's head shifted from her breast, but she held him tight, stopping his movement. If she had to, she would take on the world to ensure that Harry was protected until he could fight for himself again._

 _'No, if you want to talk to him, you do it in my presence or wait until he is in the condition to fend for himself.'_

 _Dumbledore gave her one of his patented disapproving looks. 'Miss Greengrass, you forget yourself. You have caused quite enough trouble, leading Harry away from the light …' that was as far as the old man got._

 _Harry surged to his feet, with Daphne still clutched in his arms. His magic flared into life, making the hairs on her arms and the nape of her neck rise. She locked her legs around his waist and her arms around his neck. He was still in shock; Merlin only knew if the old fool's ill-advised words and meddling would send him over the edge and cause an uncontrolled outburst of accidental magic. As strong as Harry had become, the old coot wouldn't enjoy that experience, no matter how much he deserved it._

 _'You sanctimonious, morally deficient, meddling old bastard,' Harry shouted. A strong pulse of raw magic raced towards the old man and sat him on his arse. Harry towered over him, Daphne still wrapped in his arms. 'How dare you even think that Daphne is corrupting me? Who do you think you are, you dottery old goat buggerer? Daphne has done nothing but support me, unlike some wither old fool who spouts sermons from on high, and yet with all his vaunted power he's done nothing to fix the many and varied ills of our world, not to mention leaving me in an abusive home.'_

 _Dumbledore opened his mouth to answer, but Harry kept going. 'What have you done in your life to aid and heal our world with all that power you have amassed over the years? I'll tell you what you have done; a big fat fuck all. For all your political power and prestige, Dumbledore, you've done diddly squat to fix any of our worlds injustices.'_

 _Harry's magic swirled around them, continually buffeting the Headmaster, making it impossible for him to stand and only increasing in strength with each word Harry yelled at Dumbledore. And yet whilst she was in the middle of the storm she didn't feel threatened, quite the opposite in fact; his magic was caressing her gently almost reverently, soothing away her own worries about Harry as he continued his rant at Dumbledore. 'Apart from defeating a Dark Lord, and your work on Dragons blood, I can't see any other achievements that have the name of Albus Dumbledore on them. Daphne in her fifteen years on this earth has done more to fight for equality than you have done in your many many years, you senile old coot, so don't you dare stand there and attempt to lecture or separate me from my girlfriend, you pompous prick.'_

 _With that Harry lowered her to the floor and led her out of the hallway and into the backyard, sat on a bench drew her onto his lap, and broke out into fresh sobs again. She leant into his embrace, put her arms around him, and once more tried her best to comfort her emotional boyfriend._

 _She lost track of time again, her world had narrowed and only Harry and herself seemed to exist in this moment. Harry's head rested against her breast, his breathing slow and steady. He had cried himself to exhaustion and then passed out, still clutching her body to his. She gazed into the night sky, eyes unseeing and lost until she heard her name being called softly, yet insistently._

 _'Daphne … Daphne!' A hand touched her shoulder, and she turned to see her mother's concerned face._

 _She tried to smile, but with no success, 'Hi mum … What are you doing here?'_

 _'Sirius Floo called us and told us what happened. Are you both okay?' Selene's voice was low and soft._

 _Daphne nodded. 'Physically at least, we're fine. But emotionally not so much, Dumbledore didn't help either.'_

 _Selene knelt down next to them and brushed some of the hair away from both of their faces. Harry whimpered slightly, pulling her still closer to him. 'No, I imagine not, Sirius is in there, tearing strips off him now. Your friends have been watching your back, not allowing anyone near you until we arrived.' She gestured towards Hermione and Cedric, who stood guard near the backdoor._

 _Movement at the backdoor drew Daphne's attention away from her mother. Cedric and Hermione raised and then lowered their wands as they recognised the two people exiting the door. Illuminated in the door frame for a second was the tall intimidating frame of Lord Sirius Black. He made a hushed comment to Hermione and Cedric, then stalked towards Harry and her, along with the at least half a head shorter, but no less intimidating Amelia Bones._

 _Sirius nodded to her mother before he too knelt and caressed Harry's hair. Harry stirred fitfully in his sleep, but did not waken. Before Daphne could muster any words Sirius had beaten her to it._

 _'Selene do you think that Harry can stay with you for a while? I don't think it would be wise to separate him from Daphne for the short term, and I will be busy taking care of all the other issues associated with tonight's events.' A tear rolled down his cheek as he continued to stroke Harry's hair._

 _He pulled his hand away from Harry and focused his attention on Selene, 'I know he's an emancipated minor, but I'm his lawful godfather, and for the moment I will be taking temporary responsibility for House Potter. I need to know that he's safe so I can focus on what needs to be done. I would appreciate being able to visit him as often as I can, though.'_

 _Her mother gave him a sad smile, 'Harry is always welcome in our home, as are you, Sirius. If you give me a blood vial, I will have Michael key you into the wards so that you can visit whenever you want.'_

\- APOGP -

It was the first time she had seen Harry broken and vulnerable. To be honest, it had scared the wits out of her; he had always seemed so strong. By the time they got him back to "The Acres" - the Greengrass Heir's Residence in Dorset - Harry was nearly catatonic and mumbling to himself about being bad luck and that everyone should stay away from him. It had broken her heart to see him in this state. She knew that even though Harry and his relatives didn't get along he would never have wanted them hurt because of him, they were after all the only close family he had left, Sirius and the other Black family relatives not included.

They had bundled him upstairs, and Daphne had been about to leave the room so that her mother could help get him into some sleepwear, but he had clutched hold of her and started to cry, sobbing silently into her chest, his body wracked with spasms as the events of that evening finally caught up with him. In the end her mother had just sighed and put them to bed together, Harry in his bathers and t-shirt, and she remained in her bikini and a t-shirt. Her mum had helped her step out of her short denim skirt as she knew it would ride up and be uncomfortable.

She had pulled Harry into the bed, laid his head on her breast, and combed her fingers through his hair and gave him a light scalp massage. Selene had pulled the blankets around them, gave them one last look and turned off the light as she left the room. She had every intention of getting Harry to sleep and then going to her room for a shower and a much needed rest in her own bed, but at some point she too had fallen asleep, wrapped in Harry's needy embrace.

\- APOGP -

 _It was early morning, the sun had barely started to creep above the horizon, she was hot, sweaty and confused, and this was not her bedroom! She blinked her eyes, trying to get her sleep blurry vision to clear. A warm breath tickled the back of her neck, and she froze. She turned her head slightly, trying and failing to get a glimpse of whatever or whoever was behind, until it suddenly dawned on her; she had never left Harry's bed. He was obviously still sleeping, given his breathing was deep and steady._

 _Not wanting to wake him, she relaxed back into him. His arm tightened around her in his sleep. At some point during the night Harry's hand had found its way under her t-shirt and was now holding her left breast quite intimately. A wave of heat rushed to her face. At least her bikini top was still between their skin; she wasn't quite ready for him to get full unfettered access to two of her best assets, but given he had done this whilst asleep she wasn't going to hold it against him. It felt nice … safe even, his hand never moved, it just held her in its embrace._

 _Just as she was about to drift back to sleep he shifted slightly and something hard poked into her bum. Why was Harry's wand in his pocket and not in the wand holster they had given him? She yawned, dismissed the thought as unimportant, her eyes blinked close once more and sleep claimed her again._

\- APOGP -

She smiled at this memory. His wand, indeed. Come to think of that, maybe she needed just that; a distraction. She could roll Harry onto his back and have her wicked way with him, it wouldn't take much to get him aroused, and who knew what the morning would bring? Too many times they had woken to find out there had been more bad news overnight.

His steady breathing on the back of her neck indicated he had fallen asleep again. He had been exhausted when he got back from the mainland, with cuts and bruises on his body, and his shoulders slumped with fatigue. She'd smoothed bruise paste over his ribs and healed the minor cuts and abrasions on his shoulders and knees before she'd attempted to interrogate him. It was of no use, he'd clammed up and wouldn't tell her what they'd been up to; none of them would, it was like they'd taken a vow of silence or something.

Harry, along with AV, Susan, Katie, Vicky, Cedric, Neville and Sophie, had left early yesterday morning and taken a Portkey to Merlin knew where on the Continent to who knew what. That had left her and the rest of their group going frantic with worry; too much was riding on tomorrow for them to go gallivanting around Europe and not tell anyone what they were doing.

Although to be fair, everything was in place, they had one more task to finalise and then it would be time to celebrate. Maybe she should take matters into her own hands and start the celebrations early, Harry wouldn't mind at all, and he deserved some payback for the way he had disappeared and left her steaming in her worry all day long until he finally returned in the late evening.

She should have been so forward when Harry was still hurting for that week after the Dementor attack on his relatives.

It had taken Madam Bones all of a week to discover what had happened, despite the best efforts of the individual involved to cover it up. Moving a Dementor wasn't something one could do without paperwork and at least a few people knowing.

It had taken Amelia three days of solid work to find a crack in the false paper trails that had been laid, three days in which various people tried to influence her investigation. Some wanted answers right here, right now, and damn the evidence. Others tried to point out that it was only three muggles who had unfortunately been kissed, no great loss at all, really. In the end she had a week to make some progress or the investigative team would have been wound back and it would have likely become a part of a long term caseload for a single Auror.

The breakthrough came when Azkaban's Warden had his people pull every Dementor transfer record they held and went through them with a fine tooth comb. Even then it was only a lucky break that found the chink in the armour. It was late in the afternoon on the third day when one of the supervisors glimpsed a clerk tucking some parchment into his robe pocket. He found it suspicious and informed the warden, who had everyone who had been working on the documents checked before they were allowed to leave the room for the evening.

For the next two days Amelia and her team followed a single interdepartmental memo through a series of convoluted memos that had addendums attached to them and seemed to double back on themselves through multiple departments, before they finally led to one Dolores Umbridge, Senior Undersecretary to the Minister for Magic.

She had blackmailed the clerk into sending her the original kiss order via these numerous back channels, but had forgotten that any action within the Ministry generates some sort of parchment trail. Had the clerk not got spooked and left the initial memo log alone, it was unlikely the investigative team from the DMLE would have found the entry to be suspicious before the investigation was wound down.

She had once again joined Harry in the Wizengamot chamber as the full curt sat in judgement of Dolores Umbridge, and although none of them were completely happy with the thirty year sentence she received - ten years for each muggle life as Harry put it - at least this time justice had seemingly been done.

About the only other good thing to come out of this episode was the shake up that rocked through the ministry because of the attempt on Harry Potter's - the Boy-Who-Lived - life. Fudge's fear of public reprisals for his Senior Undersecretary's actions gave Amelia Bones carte-blanche to conduct widespread evaluations into every department, reviews that were still ongoing as they arrived back at Hogwarts for their fifth year, with Cedric as their Head Boy. He'd share the duties with Stacey Fawcett from Ravenclaw as the Head Girl.

Although Harry had been offered a Prefect role, he refused when they had discovered that the female Slytherin role had been offered to Pansy Parkinson. As far as he and everyone else in their group was concerned it should have gone to her and if it wasn't Daphne, at the very least it should have been Sophie, as they were the two top girls in their Slytherin group. The surprising thing to them all when they heard about it later was that Draco had also turned down the role as prefect. The role would be taken up by Theo Nott. Harry had been adamant that it was just Snape and Dumbledore being bastards.

After Harry had sent a letter back and advised Professor McGonagall to give it to Neville, they along with Cedric had to almost browbeat Hermione into submission so that she also wouldn't quit in protest as well, regarding Pansy. They would later find out that although McGonagall had submitted Neville's name as the Gryffindor male prefect, she had been overruled by Dumbledore, and the honour went to Ron Weasley, much to her annoyance and vehement protests. Hermione was livid when she heard about Ron's appointment a week before school started and vowed she would hold him to task regarding his duties as a perfect, if it was the last thing she did. She planned to nag him into quitting within the first month.

\- APOGP -

 _Dumbledore rose from his chair at the head table, and every conversation in the Great Hall ebbed away. Daphne cast a glance at the Gryffindor table. Harry was watching her, a dreamy expression on his face. Her face heated up; she knew what he was thinking about. A poke in her ribs prompted her to turn to the grinning girl next to her. 'A knut for your thoughts Daphne … oh, okay, nope, don't worry about it. I can see Harry's face from here and I know what you're both thinking about,' Iris whispered in her ear._

 _Daphne's cheeks became even warmer, and she gave her friend a wide-eyed look. Iris gave a low chuckle in reply and turned her attention to the head table._

 _Daphne followed her example and listened to Dumbledore's introduction of a new teacher. 'Please, join me in welcoming our new Defence against the Dark Arts Professor, Abilene Farley. Professor Farley comes to us from the Auror department and is currently on convalescent leave after sustaining injuries in the line of duty.' Dumbledore led the applause as Professor Farley rose from her seat, leaning on a walking stick, and nodded her head toward each table in turn._

 _The Auror's hair was pulled back into a very functional ponytail, allowing them to see that she had three visible scar lines on the right side of her face, as though her face had been clawed by a talon or trident. The three scars were parallel and evenly spaced, the upper most scar started just behind her eye, with the bottom scar line starting just behind the corner of her mouth. All three lines travelled back into her hairline - the upper two bisecting her ear - with her hair visibly greying around them._

 _Besides the visible scars, Auror Farley was a good looking woman, who looked to be in her late twenties or early thirties, but Daphne knew from experience that judging a witch's age after they entered their twenties was very hard to do until they reached somewhere in their seventies or eighties; only then would they start showing their age. She just hoped that this year's DADA Professor wouldn't join what Harry liked to call the Let's-Kill-Potter club._

 _She was so lost in her thoughts she hadn't noticed that the feast had ended until two arms encircle her and a warm breath whispered against her ear. 'I missed you.'_

 _She turned her head to see sparkling green eyes looking back at her. Her body was moved on its own and her lips met his. The feeling of his lips on hers still thrilled her as it had on their first kiss, and she sighed, content all was right in the world once more._

 _As she rose from the bench with Harry's assistance, Professor Farley also rose and moved with the aid of her cane down towards the doors. The Auror walked with a visible limp on her left side and carried her left shoulder as though it were stiff. As they waited to exit the Great Hall with the rest of their friends, Professor Farley appeared to be making her way to them. Daphne nudged Harry and alerted him to that fact with a flick of her eyes._

 _Harry turned, saw the Professor approaching and stopped his movement towards the doors, drawing her to a halt with him and causing the rest of their friends to stop in their tracks as well._

 _Abilene Farley drew to a stop in front of them both and gave a slight nod of her head to them all. 'Mr Potter, Miss Greengrass and friends.' Her gaze took in the rest of the assembled group._

 _Harry inclined his own head. 'Professor Farley.'_

 _She was unsure of when or how it had happened, but by the end of the summer people naturally deferred decisions to Harry. It was he who decided where they would meet the next day and what they were doing, ideas were brought forth by them all, but the final decision for the group always seemed to rest on Harry's shoulders._

 _Abilene smiled at them; the skin puckering and pulling tight against her scars caused her smile to be heavily lopsided. 'I was approached by two fellow Aurors asking me to continue your group's training whilst I'm in the school. I was wondering if we could discuss this over breakfast tomorrow morning?'_

 _Harry looked around to the rest of their gathered group, taking in their nods of ascent with one quick glance. 'It looks like we have a date, Professor,' he replied with a roguish grin. 'I will dress appropriately.'_

 _Daphne slapped his arm, and their friends laughed; he was spending too much time with Sirius and her father._

 _Abilene smirked at him. 'I look forward to it, young master Potter,' she said, emphasising the young part of her statement and bringing chuckles all around._

 _'Milady,' Harry returned with another roguish grin and a small bow._

 _She once again inclined her head to the group and limped away._

 _They were all about to start moving off to their dorms. Harry offered his arm to escort her down to the dungeons, to which she responded to with a look of mock disdain, when something within their group caught her eye._

 _Katie had watched Harry's antics. Now her glance focused on Adrian Pucey, who was also laughing. Katie's face morphed from laughter to a very determined look. With a half muttered, 'Aww screw it,' Katie launched herself at a very surprised AP, who caught her around the waist as her lips crashed into his. Behind their backs, their group exchanged wide-eyed looks of surprise._

 _Five seconds went past before Adrian closed his surprised eyes and kissed Katie back. Iris wolf-whistled, and Daphne relaxed against Harry, doing a silent inward happy dance. It was about time, Katie extracted the digit, as Hermione said._

 _Harry suddenly released her body, and she was startled from her silent contemplation of her friend as he moved away. He whispered something to Neville. Neville's eyes became wide, and a slight look of panic appeared on his face. What mischief was Harry up now? The next moment Harry propelled him into an unsuspecting Sophie._

 _Sophie didn't have to be told twice what to do. She pulled Neville's head down to her own and seemed to try and swallow his face. Poor Neville didn't know where to put his hands until Sophie disengaged one of her own hands from Neville's head and captured one of his and placed it on her arse._

 _Daphne shook her head at her very straightforward friend. 'Sophie, you're a tart.'_

 _Sophie's response was to flip her the bird as she continued to kiss a now much less flustered Neville._

 _Eventually Professor Sinistra came over and broke up the two new couples and directed everyone to their dorms. Neville escorted Sophie to the Slytherin dorms along with Kenneth, AV and Harry, of course._

 _AP had attempted to escort Katie to Gryffindor tower; however, she had declined; since she was the one to take the initiative, she would do the escorting, thank you very much. That led to all the boys playfully pointing out to AP that it was obvious who was wearing the pants in this new relationship._

 _AP had taken the ribbing in the manner it was intended, even playing along by asking Katie what sort of flowers she was going to bring him in the morning?_

 _Breakfast the next morning was an interesting affair, Katie didn't disappoint them and brought a bunch of flowers made up of purple and white Lilacs and Primroses. Those from the old families fell over themselves laughing and eventually managed to explain that those flowers represented the First Emotions of Love, Youthful Innocence and Young Love._

 _Professor Fawley also joined them at the Hufflepuff table to discuss their training, which got them a strange look or two from not just the head table, but from every other house table as well._

 _It also appeared that the group had gained another three permanent members during the summer. Lisa Turpin, who had managed to score herself several invites earlier on during the summer had by the end basically become a permanent fixture, which as far as Daphne was concerned was fine, now that Sophie had final managed to hook Neville with Harry's help._

 _The now sixth year Hufflepuff chaser, Tamsin Applebee, had been invited along by both her cousin Scarlett several times and her team captain Cedric. Like the true Hufflepuff she was, she'd spent most of that time helping the fourth going on fifth years with all their summer homework. She was also a highly talented chaser, and had struck up a tentative relationship over that with Terence Higgs. They made a striking couple with the golden haired and pale Higgs balanced by the dark mocha hair and Arabian skinned Applebee._

 _Tamsin's grandmother was a Muggle born Arabian immigrant who had met her husband at Hogwarts after her family had left the war ravaged Tobruk when she was eight. Jaxson Applebee had married the exotic beauty against his family's wishes, but they had not disowned him, rather distanced themselves from him for the first decade of their marriage instead. By the time they understood that Jaxson and his wife Taslima were not going to separate, they had two sons and were expecting a third child._

 _That third child was Charles Applebee, Tamsin's father, who had been a highly successful chaser across several teams both in Britain and on the continent. He had hung up the gloves and left the Ballycastle Bats in Northern Ireland two years prior and was now one of the coaches at the Falmouth Falcons._

 _The last member of their expanded group was Oliver Rivers, Michael's best friend. The heir to the Rivers' magical farming empire had three much younger triplet sisters, who it was said were born with the aid of muggle technology. The tall, aristocratically handsome boy was actually a lot of fun if you could get him to let his hair down, but like Hermione he took his studying very seriously. His family owned large tracts of land which were perfect for pick-up games of Quidditch, and so he found himself acquiring numerous new friends among the Quidditch mad group._

 _Daphne once more was brought out of her musings by a poke in the ribs from Iris as Professor Fawley addressed them._

 _'I will come straight to the point. Aurors Jones and Vaisey approached me separately once they found out that I would be teaching here for the year, and asked if I would continue your training. I have in principle agreed to their request,' Abilene started once they were all seated._

 _Excited chatter broke out amongst the group, the training sessions with both Ra and Occy were hard but very rewarding. They had learnt more about offensive and defensive magic over the summer holidays than they had in their four, five or six years at school._

 _Abilene continued, 'However, Auror Jones also had a second request after assessing your practical magic skills over the summer. After some consideration, I find myself in agreement with her and would like you all to consider the following, should I find that her assessment of your classmates is accurate.'_

 _Silence reigned as the group waited to find out what the two Aurors had discussed._

 _'Should the overall class performance be as low as I am now expecting, I would like to start a second study group open to all at the school, and I would like you all to consider helping me with the instruction of that group. You will find that teaching someone else these skills hones your own.'_

 _'Now I don't want an answer yet, like I said I want to assess your classmates abilities, but I would like you to start think about this as a possibility. I will let you all finish your breakfast, please discuss this and I will arrange another date with **young** Mr Potter in a couple of weeks.' With chuckles all round she rose stiffly and made her way out of the Great Hall._

\- APOGP -

That first half of the year had been quiet in the end - the quiet before the storm. They had continued to meet as a group and train; Abilene was as good as her word taking over from where Occy and Ra had left off and pushing them all to their limits and beyond. Daphne found that what she thought was fit wasn't even close to what she could actually achieve.

She stirred again and rolled to face Harry once more, pushing him flat on to his back before almost giving into temptation and rolling completely on top of him. Instead she rolled herself into his side and allowed her fingers to play with one of his nipples, still lost in her thoughts. Sometime later a delicious shiver rolled through her body, followed by that tell-tale tightening in her core. She startled. Harry's hand caressed her behind in the most delightful way. He must have done so for a while without her realising it. If he wanted to, he was as sneaky as any Slytherin.

Daphne gave her boyfriend a playful frown and went back to her musings. It had been a strange year, at least that was what Harry had told her prior to boarding the Hogwarts express to journey home at the end of their fifth year. It didn't mean that weird things hadn't happened throughout the year, but they weren't happening to Harry, or if they did somehow impact him he was on the periphery of the action rather than being front and centre.

Voldemort too was seemingly content to lay low at the moment. The lack of any significant and visible action was something that none of them could comprehend, and as the year progressed and they waited for the war to kick off it lay over them like some ominous and claustrophobic blanket.

The next thing that came to mind was Draco Malfoy's total lack of any overt action against Harry. That wasn't significantly strange in itself since Draco had been notably subdued since Harry's altercation with him in the Great Hall, however, his almost polar shift in attitude towards those he had previously deemed unworthy _was_ strange. It had been a slow start, but once they started noticing it was hard not to see the Malfoy heir's change in attitude.

He wasn't going to become Hermione's or Justin's best friend by any stretch of the imagination any time soon, but he wasn't their antagonist anymore, either. In fact, he was polite yet distant. When partnered with someone in class who wasn't of pure ancestry, he offered no protest and even paid the very occasional backhanded compliment. The arrogant boy of the previous year had been replaced by a determined, yet aloof and isolated young man.

Abilene had continually paired him against half-bloods and muggleborns in the supplementary DADA club she ran with the help of the TGS group twice a week. Abilene had laid the law down at the very first meeting, stating in in no uncertain terms she would brook no argument whilst people were at these meetings and if they didn't like it they could leave.

She identified her helpers from the TGS group who would assist her by going around the students, offering tips and corrections during the lessons. It was of little surprise that Harry, Susan and herself from fifth year, Katie AV and Vicky from sixth year and Cedric, Kenneth and Tamsin from seventh year, were all chosen to hold these roles as they were the best exponents of DADA within their age groups. That didn't mean they were all equal by any stretch of the imagination. Whilst most of them could hold their own against most opponents, Cedric, Tamsin, Vicky and Harry were in a league of their own.

Cedric had pushed himself relentlessly to be better after nearly dying in the graveyard to the point that it was only Hermione who could get him to stop and have some fun occasionally. Whilst Cedric was driven, Vicky and Tamsin were just talented. Tamsin's grace on a broomstick was replicated on the ground, dodging bludgers on the Quidditch pitch seemed to translate well to dodging spells, and she had knowledge of Arabian magic which gave her a distinct advantage over other opponents.

If those three were gale force winds then Harry was a Hurricane mixed with the immovable rock, his shields could withstand a battering from up to three opponents simultaneously. Abilene had recognised that he had power to burn and had taught him several advanced shields including the Utor shield which he could transfer into his off hand, allowing him to hold it wandlessly. It fed off the power of the spells used against it, both strengthening and enlarging itself the more it was hit. The Vorso shield would reflect the attackers own spell against them. The major issue with both of them was that they were exhausting to hold. The Utor was mostly fine as long as it was being feed energy from other spells, but was very hard to hold if nothing hit it for more than thirty of forty seconds. The Vorso shield, however, was such a heavy power drain that even Harry could only use it in bursts of less than half a minute, which was why most practitioners cast it of mere moments, only long enough to reflect a spell and move.

If he wasn't on the defensive then his spells packed a punch. It was far better not to get in the way of them as Harry's stunner took a good couple of hours to wear off naturally, and very few of them could Renervate someone hit by one of them and even if they did manage it the person was very groggy for several minutes later and useless in a fight for a good ten or fifteen minutes as they regained their equilibrium.

Only Vicky could hold her own and even that was becoming more debatable the more they trained together. She employed a type of passive legilimency that was a developed family trait which was very difficult to block completely, even by master Occlumens whilst fighting, and her skills were honed against her Auror father. Still these advantages only allowed her to move and predict Harry's attacks. On her best days she could slip spells of her own past his guard, but the margins were getting smaller as his wandwork got faster.

Hermione's birthday came and went. With the group now totalling twenty-two they hosted a lovely pool party for her in the Room of Requirement. Somehow their group had ended up with a nice even mixture of boys and girls, and there were some very interesting new couples starting to develop. Michael had literally cornered Megan, and Oliver Rivers, not to be outdone by his Ravenclaw counterpart, had taken it upon himself to try and make Susan blush as much as possible.

In that one birthday Hermione had gone from a witch who couldn't care less for her image to someone who now took pride in her looks. She was never going to be one of those girls who sat down and talked about the latest fashions, but she had been given a massive boost in confidence from the joint birthday present from Daphne, Sophie, Iris and Scarlett of a year's supply of personalised shampoos and conditioners.

The girl's bushy hair had been significantly tamed and now hung in large, yet still somewhat boisterous waves down her back. What had Hermione so excited was that the more she used the products, the more controlled and shiny her hair would become, it was like her very own self-fulfilling prophecy. Hermione had almost broken down in tears when she unwrapped the present and told the girls later on that she had almost raced to the showers straight away to get started. Her hair was the one thing that she felt she could not control and it had bothered her immensely.

Not content with that Vicky had taken Hermione under her wing and was showing the girl that with magic it took next to no time to look more than presentable. That wasn't to say that those spells were as good enough to use prior going to a ball, no, the best results still came from hands on work. For most days, the three minutes in the morning they took to do and a couple of minor touch up spells throughout the day could make a girl feel quite good about themselves, Vicky suspected that Hermione had never had the motivation to want to learn them before, now that she was with Cedric however she wanted to put her best foot forward given the looks that her boyfriend received from many of the girls in Hogwarts.

The awestruck look on Cedric's face the next morning when Hermione met him at the doors to the Great Hall was something she'd remember for a long time. Daphne had never seen a shy or demure Hermione before; gone was the all-conquering, all-knowing Gryffindor Princess; instead she stood, her head slightly bowed, fidgeting under Cedric's hot gaze. It took Kole nudging Cedric into action for him to regain his ability to move and speak only one word: "Beautiful."

He had cupped her cheek, raised her face to his own, and gave her a soft lingering kiss, which Hermione returned tentatively at first before losing herself in the moment. They broke apart after a short while and looked at each other tenderly, their foreheads resting against each other's. The heart-warming moment was broken when Kenneth started applauding their performance and shouting "Bravo, Bravo", causing both of them to blush.

When Halloween neared Megan noticed that Harry was slowly withdrawing into himself, and she approached Daphne about it. Daphne berated herself for about two days for not noticing the subtle changes in her boyfriend, all the while procrastinating about whether or not to ask Harry what was wrong. In the end she dithered for too long and it was Katie, his Quidditch sister, who sent everyone except Daphne and Hermione away, pulled him aside, sat him down, and asked him what was wrong.

\- APOGP -

 _'Harry… please look at me.' Katie nudged his shoulder with her own, giving him the impetus to look up at her._

 _Harry lifted his head, gave her a brief, tight smile, then looked back down at his hands and fidgeted with the hem of his shirt._

 _'Harry, we can't help unless you let us. Now, I thought we'd got past this whole Mr Broody Pants routine last year, but evidently you're slipping … and I for one don't like it. So, tell me, buster, what's eating you up so much that you won't even talk to your beautiful, intelligent and downright awesome … Quidditch girlfriend?' Katie asked him, dragging the last few adjectives out as both Harry and Daphne blushed before gaping at her in unison._

 _Daphne slapped Katie's shoulder, and Harry gave a rueful chuckle before his face became sombre once more and he sighed. 'Let me ask you something Katie. What does Halloween mean to you?'_

 _Katie gave him a wide smile. Daphne let out a silent breath, she had finally got him talking. 'Well, Halloween means not much to me, really. Samhain, however, is the festival of the harvest and means significantly more to me. It's also the night that the veil is at its thinnest and we believe that our ancestors walk among us. If we weren't required by the Headmaster to be here during the Halloween feast, something Dumbledore instituted during his tenure as headmaster I might add, I would attend one of the Samhain bonfires with my family in a protected circle and give an offering of blood and thanks that they have watched over us, and that my family might prosper for the coming year.'_

 _Harry gave her a tight smile. 'Anything else?'_

 _Katie gave him a confused look. 'No, not really, Harry; we usually give thanks and offer our hopes to the fires for the next year. I know that might seem simple, but that's all there is to it. Why, what's wrong?' She reached a hand out and clasped his forearm. 'If you don't tell us we can't help.'_

 _Daphne stayed quiet, holding her breath, noticing Hermione do the same as Harry swallowed a couple of times before he finally managed to find his voice? 'It's funny you know, I've never really given the day any serious thought until this year.' He ran a hand through his hair and leaned himself back against the chair's back. 'I guess it wasn't really a date that I considered until Cedric told me that his family would celebrate it in the same way you just described, Katie.'_

 _Harry pushed himself from his seat and started to pace in front of them, his tight face showed how hard he was working to stay in control. 'And that … right there is the crux of the matter that has been stewing in my mind for the better part of a week: my family died on that day all those years ago, and not once have I ever stopped to think about them and say thanks.'_

 _Daphne stifled her gasp, Hermione wiped furiously at a couple of stray tears that rolled down from her eyes and Katie's face paled as they all understood the implications of what Harry was saying. Harry had never really stopped to think or remember his parents, in the entire time they had been together not once had they gone to visit the graves of James and Lily Potter. And for the previous four years at Hogwarts Harry had essentially ignored the fact that his parents had sacrificed their lives on that fateful Halloween night way back in nineteen eighty one._

 _Daphne rushed to him and pulled his face down to her own so that she could look him in the eyes, trying to convey every soothing emotion she could send him. 'You listen to me Harry James Potter, and you listen well. Your parents would be nothing but proud of the man you have become, they would not have wanted you dwelling on their deaths. They gave their lives so that you could live, and that's what you've been doing, you've been living Harry, not stuck on what could or should have been. Trust me, I know that by just being you, you have been honouring your parents better than any of the rest of us.'_

 _Harry gave her another tight smile, but a tear escaped from his left eye. Its warmth seeped beneath her fingers as she continued, 'I tell you what, how about we skip the feast and hold our own Samhain celebration in the protected circle here at Hogwarts? I'm sure we can organise something small between the two of us. I will show you how to make the offerings, and we can give thanks and remember your parents.'_

 _'No, Daphne,' Katie said quietly. Her voice became stronger as both Daphne and Harry turned towards their friend. 'If you're going to do that I will be helping too.'_

 _It was left to Hermione to sum up what was actually going to happen. 'You're both out of your pretty little minds if you think the two of you are going to be the only ones there for Harry at something like this. I can tell you this right now, not one of our friends is going to want to attend a ridiculous and meaningless feast when they could be supporting Harry to remember his parents in such as meaningful way.'_

\- APOGP -

Hermione had been right of course, and with so many helpers their Samhain came and went quietly, except for when Dumbledore had given them all detentions for skipping the mandatory Hogwarts feast. They'd been trooping back into the entrance hall, when the Headmaster imperiously strode up to them all and handed out the detentions, a smug and self-satisfied Ron Weasley standing in the background. The Headmaster had not deigned it necessary to even once ask them for an explanation and was turning to leave when he uttered a threat that was a step too far for Harry.

\- APOGP -

 _'I expected better of you, Mr Diggory. Perhaps I was too hasty in granting you the Headboy's position this year. I will be reviewing my decision and will let you know the outcome in due course'_

 _Daphne's gaze flicked towards Cedric, whose face looked crestfallen at the thought that his role might be taken away from him. Hermione wrapped her arms around her boyfriend, trying to offer him some comfort. She like the rest of them gaped when Harry started a slow clap as the Headmaster took his first couple of steps away, freezing him in place before he gradually turned his head to look incredulously back at Harry._

 _What followed became the stuff of Hogwarts folklore. Harry tore strips into the headmaster with several statements that were long overdue to be made. 'You know Dumbledore, I'm not sure what I'm more shocked by, the fact that Ron Weasley was observant enough to notice we weren't at the feast, or the fact that you have managed not yet to drown in that ocean of hypocrisy you swim in every day.'_

 _Ron's face turned purple and he made choking sounds, whilst Dumbledore spluttered just as incoherently. Harry ignored them and just kept talking._

 _'What, old man, you think I haven't noticed you seem keen to forgive everybody who commits a crime, but me or my new friends? Harry you must rise above this hatred and turn the other cheek!' he said in a mock falsetto. His eyes stabbed the headmaster. 'Do you know what happens when you turn the other cheek to someone who hates you or isn't repentant about their actions, Dumbledore?' He never waited for, nor gave Dumbledore time to answer. 'It gets slapped, Headmaster, that's what happens. Somehow, however, I don't think the people I am dealing with are going to stop at a slap. Do you?'_

 _'Harry, you must understand that … '_

 _Harry steamrolled over top of whatever Dumbledore was going to say. 'Yes, yes I understand that you're a self-righteous, meddling old fool, Headmaster, and if it wasn't for the fact that it's my life you insist on playing with, I'd probably find it amusing. For some reason known only to you however, you have decided no matter what Harry Potter is doing, as long as he is dancing to your tune then it's fine, but as soon as he starts to look like he's marching to his own drummer, you try to guilt trip him into being a good little boy. Well, guess what, old man, the tune your piper is playing no longer gets my feet tapping. I'd sooner drown in shite than listen to any further drivel that escapes your mouth and is called wisdom by the sheep of this world. Stop trying to control things that are not yours to control, Headmaster.'_

 _'That is quite enough Harry.' Dumbledore almost, but not quite growled._

 _'Really? But my dear Dumbledore, I was only just getting started.' Harry bit back, sarcasm dripping from his words. 'Did you ever plan on introducing me to any Magical customs? I have been with Daphne less than nine months, and yet she and the rest of our friends have already introduced me to the festivals, holidays and beliefs that a majority of the magical population adhere to and yet you have been conspicuous in your absence regarding such things. Did you not want me to know about my heritage? My friends have made me aware that my father celebrated these holidays with some of their parents, and that my mother was introduced to them by her friends whilst a few of the practices were still allowed to be conducted here at Hogwarts, and yet it seems to me that you have very deliberately withheld this part of my heritage from me.'_

 _Dumbledore turned and opened his hands in a placating gesture. 'Harry my boy, I had thought that-'_

 _Harry cut him off. 'I highly doubt you thought about it at all, Headmaster. In fact, I think that you think far too little of me. However, now that I say that, it's probably a good thing. Should you attempt to remove Cedric's Headboy badge from him, then be prepared to reap what you sow. He has supported me unconditionally in something that I could not do for myself. I will not fail him.'_

 _Ron, who had somehow managed to get his temper under control enough to engage his mouth, broke into the conversation, beating Dumbledore to an answer. 'Awww poor little Harry Potter, woe is me, everyone is being nasty to me and I don't like it, so I'm going to take my broom and quaffle and go home.' The youngest Weasley male sneered and pantomimed crying with both fists._

 _Harry turned ice cold emerald eyes on his former friend and shook his head. 'Ron, you're so pathetic, you're not even worth my time.' With that, Harry turned and strode off down the corridor by himself, a breeze seeming to flow in his wake, and left behind at least forty gobsmacked students and teachers._

 _\- APOGP -_

McGonagall had also been very unhappy with them all until Hermione and Katie had explained the reason why they had all been absent. Dumbledore insisted on taking Cedric's Head Boy badge, but McGonagall had been staunch in his defence and had finally won the day, suggesting his loyalty to his friend should be rewarded not punished. Dumbledore had eventually capitulated and had allowed Cedric to keep his badge, but it had been a close run thing. She hadn't been able to lift the detentions, given that they actually had broken a school rule, but she promised them she would have a solution in place for next year, should they wish to do the same.

It wasn't until they were returning from the Yule break that things went tits up, as Justin called it rather indelicately, for the first time that school year. Which wasn't accurate in hindsight since the actual catalyst for what happened occurred the day prior to them leaving school for the Yule or Christmas break.

A small story the day before they were to board the train for their return to Hogwarts, on the second page of The Independent Magical, was the only indication that something had occurred and even that indicated that details of the incident were being suppressed out of respect for the family by the DMLE.

The story, if you could call it that, stated that there had been an incident in The Department of Mysteries some fifteen days earlier, but other than the fact that a Ministry employee died little else was known at this stage. Even as they boarded the train there was still very little information known apart from the fact there had been an issue and one person was believed to have died one day later in Saint Mungo's.

It was the eagle eyes of Scarlett and Hermione who had read the article and asked if anyone knew what it was about. Susan's aunt had been somewhat sorrowful, but tight lipped, and Sirius had looked apologetic, but also hadn't offered them any answers. In fact not one family member who work at the Ministry was saying anything on the subject. They didn't know what to make of it, and it felt like the first time, that they were deliberately excluded from knowing what had happened by any of their guardians.

 _\- APOGP -_

 _Their carriage door opened with a crash, startling them all, and wands immediately appeared in their hands along with those of their friends, Sophie, Neville, Susan and Megan._

 _'Where were you, Potter?' asked a snarling Ron Weasley, face red and contorted with rage._

 _Harry blinked, his wand flicking back in to the holster on his wrist as he relaxed somewhat._

 _'I'm sorry Ron, I don't understand what you mean,' he asked his former best friend in a confused voice as he stood up and took a pace away from the window seat to stand in front of Daphne._

 _'I said, where were you, Potter, when my father died?' the red head snarled again, stepping forward further into the carriage, trying to loom over Harry._

 _Daphne blinked in confusion. The emotion was mirrored on what she could see of her boyfriend's face._

 _'Ron, I don't understand.'_

 _'Hippogriff shite!' Weasley was almost froffing at the mouth with anger. 'Where was the great Boy-Who-Lived whilst my father was bleeding out on the ground, protecting one of your secrets? Too good to help those lower than you now?'_

 _Harry blinked in confusion at him, mouth agape._

 _Whatever he was going to say was cut off as the red head threw a vicious right handed punch which connected with Harry's open jaw, snapping it across and closed. There was the sharp crack of bone breaking, and she froze as Harry collapsed bonelessly backwards in unconsciousness, his jaw flopping sickeningly from side to side. The back of his head smacked into the windowsill with a nauseating thud before he crumpled to the ground, sprawled against the cabin wall._

 _Ron stepped forward, with his foot raised as if to kick Harry whilst he was down. She had a spell on her lips, but Susan beat her to that. She unceremoniously banished the red headed arsehole out of the carriage door to crash headlong into the opposite door behind him._

 _She was moving to the door, half a dozen hexes on her tongue, when Sophie grabbed her tightly around the middle._

 _'Daphne, stop,' Sophie commanded._

 _'Let me go Soph, I'm going to hex his bollocks off, no fuck it, I'm going to leave him the dick-less wonder of Hogwarts, let me go!' she snarled, struggling to get free and bring her wand to bare on the bastard who thought he could hit Harry and get away with it._

 _'Daph, stop, he isn't worth it,' Sophie tried again, struggling to keep the enraged girl pinned against her. Help came in the unexpected form of a small but sharp slap on Daphne's cheek from Susan._

 _Daphne blinked at the strawberry blonde in front of her, trying to register the fact that Susan had struck her. 'Daphne, stop it, I'll deal with the idiot over there, you see to your boyfriend.'_

 _Daphne blinked again, 'I …' her eyes turned towards the still prone body of her boyfriend, 'Oh shit, Harry!' She briefly struggled in Sophie's arms again before the other girl let her go and she collapsed to her knees and lifted Harry's head onto her lap._

 _Her fingers came away sticky and red, and she started to panic, her hand shaking before her eyes as she saw Harry's life blood coating her fingers, 'Oh Circe, he's bleeding, please we have to help him.'_

 _Concerned eyes met above the prone body on the floor, before Megan was up, pushing past Susan and dashing out of the door towards the front of the train._

 _'Shit,' muttered Susan. 'I'll get this arsehole out of here before he gets killed by the rest of our friends. I'll take him to the Heads carriage; they can deal with him for the moment.' There were nods all around, and Susan left, levitating the moaning Ronald Weasley towards the front of the train._

 _'How long does it take to find someone?' Daphne asked no one in particular. Time seemed to have slowed in its march forward as they waited for Megan to return with help._

 _'Daph, it's been less than a minute,' Neville said from her side as he pulled a neatly folded handkerchief from his pocket and handed it towards Daphne._

 _'Oh,' was Daphne's only response as she slowly carded her unbloodied finger through a still unconscious Harry's hair._

 _'Here, use this to help stop the bleeding,' he placed the handkerchief in Daphne's hand and looked at Sophie and Daphne. 'Remember, no-one casts a spell on him until we get him to the healers, it could do more damage to his brain if he has a brain injury.'_

 _Both girls nodded as they remembered the basic field first aid that Abilene had taught them. In an unconscious state from a concussion the brain was far more susceptible to damage from foreign magic._

 _Daphne took the handkerchief and held it against the back of Harry's head where it was weeping blood at a steady rate. She was just about to ask about help again when the train gave a lurch and started to slow down. 'What's happening?' she asked to no one in particular instead._

 _'We're going to be getting help, I think,' Neville answered, stood up, headed to the door, and peered down the corridor._

 _The inter carriage doors banged and then running footsteps headed their way._

 _Neville had stepped through the door, and the first of their friends in Hermione and Cedric arrived in the doorframe as the Hogwarts Express ground to a halt._

 _Daphne returned her attention to her prone boyfriend's form. Hermione let out a startled gasp. Daphne's eyes flicked back up at that, just as Susan pushed through the crowd and back into the carriage and asked, 'How is he?'_

 _'No change, still unconscious and bleeding,' Neville answered before Daphne could form a sentence._

 _'Right, Cedric do you think you can apparate us back here?' Susan asked the Head Boy._

 _Cedric looked at his strawberry blonde housemate with a blank expression before comprehension dawned on his face. 'Give me a moment,' he requested and pushed his way through the crowd of their friends and ran outside. A sudden pop later and he appeared in front of the carriage window, just as quickly disappearing again, only to appear several yards further away._

 _'What's he doing?' asked a confused Justin from the doorway._

 _Hermione answered as she watched Cedric make a series of three more small jumps. 'He's learning the location, it's not somewhere familiar and he doesn't have a map or any other way to visualise the location, so he is making a series of small jumps in the area so that his magic will be familiar with this location. That way he can easily apparate back to this location because it will be familiar to his magic.'_

 _Hermione turned towards Susan. 'I take it you're going to use your Portkey?'_

 _'Yep, I might get in trouble for it, but it will be worth it. He needs medical attention and he needs it now'; why there are no supervisors on this train I will never know.'_

 _Cedric pushed his way back into the carriage and nodded at Susan. 'Alright, I'm ready when you are.'_

 _Susan smiled at them all as she pulled a locket from inside her clothing. 'Wish us luck … I may just need it.' She gave a bark of laughter. 'Grab on Ced, we're going for a ride.'_

 _Cedric smiled at her and reached out to grab onto the chain holding the locket around Susan's neck._

 _She smiled at them all again, held her wand against the pendant and said clearly, 'I really need to go,' then they were whisked away out of the carriage._

 _Silence reigned in the carriage, and Daphne continued to card her fingers through Harry's hair as Hermione moved forward and picked up one of his hands and held it gently in her own. 'He'll be okay Daph, he's been hurt far, far worse …' She paused a moment as if contemplating her next thought before asking in a more subdued voice, 'Do you have any idea why Ron did it?'_

 _Daphne's fingers froze, stuck in Harry's fringe, and fury flashed across her face. Then she breathed deeply, her fingers resumed their activity, the deep breath came out as a ragged heavy sigh. Her voice, however, held a dangerous edge to it as she answered Hermione's question. 'No idea, actually… He stormed in here, accusing Harry of allowing his father to die or something like that.'_

 _Hermione's breath hitched. 'Arthur's dead?' she squeaked out. Looking around as if trying to locate someone, but failing to do so, she asked the still quiet crowd, 'Has anyone seen the twins?'_

 _There were muttered variations of 'No,' from all in the vicinity. 'We'll go look for them Hermione, I think we are missing some information here,' Vicky spoke up finally, indicating that Tamsin would help her, as nervous shuffling broke out among those standing._

 _'Thank you, Vicky, I am praying that this has been some great big mistake.' Hermione's eyes drifted down to the prone form of her friend. 'But somehow I don't think that's it, I think it more likely that something terrible has happened.'_

 _The set of very despondent looking red headed twins appeared several minutes later, along with their girlfriends Angelina and Alicia. They took one look at the unconscious Harry, shared a glance, and then one of them asked in a dead voice, 'Ron?'_

 _The question or statement was answered with nods all around, and there were dual sighs from the twins. 'He's been teetering on the edge of reason since Dad was "mortally injured" in the Department of Mysteries,' one of them stated flatly, using air quotes, before the other picked up their tennis match style talking._

 _'It's been fairly well kept out of the papers by the Ministry so far, they don't want it known that he was attacked inside the Ministry, nor that the Auror's fought a running battle with You-Know-Who's minions all the way up to the atrium, but his funeral was yesterday, so we expect it will be common knowledge soon.' He gave an apologetic shrug and continued in a very subdued voice, 'We are sorry none of you knew, but Bill and Charlie decided to keep it small as Mum has had a bit of a breakdown and isn't dealing with things at all well.'_

 _The other twin picked up where his brother left off. 'Anyway, we know he was there guarding something, we don't know what or why, but we know it was for Dumbledore.' He cocked his head to the side and continued, 'Neither Bill nor Charlie know, and Dumbledore's not saying what it was either … they are less than happy about it.'_

 _'What we do know is that something went wrong, and he was bitten by something poisonous. He crawled back to an antechamber of some kind and was seen by a portrait, who raised the alarm, but it was too late. He bled out on the floor before help arrived, although the official story is that he died in Saint Mungo's,' the first twin finished with a sneer, before the other once more started speaking._

 _'We also know that Madam Bones was furious with Fudge that he again tried to keep a lid on the press rather than let everyone know that You-Know-Who is actually back and was in in the Ministry for Magic, but we overheard her telling Bill and Charlie as far as she was concerned the only good news that came from our fathers death were the concessions she wrang out of the Minister. Just so you know the DMLE is now on a war footing.'_

 _Daphne was just about to ask why Harry and Hermione hadn't at least been invited to the funeral as they were still close to the twins and most of the rest of the family, even if they were on the outs with the youngest two Weasleys, when they heard the tell-tale pop of apparition outside the window._

 _Susan, Cedric, Amelia, and another Auror appeared outside the window. Cedric collapsed to his knees, obviously exhausted by ferrying three people with him. Amelia waved her wand over a long piece of cord and tapped it with her wand before handing it off to the other Auror, who promptly disappeared with another pop._

 _Hermione tried and failed to stifle a gasp as she stepped towards the window, a hand reaching out to Cedric as if to help him. Susan hauled the wizard to his feet, glanced at Hermione and nodded in the direction of the Head's carriage, before dragging the dead on his feet wizard in that direction as Madam Bones moved to the nearest carriage door in their direction._

 _Hermione nodded her acknowledgement, then bent and kissed Daphne on her forehead, 'Look after him, Daph, I need to go and see to Cedric.'_

 _Daphne just gave her a sad smile and said, 'I will, go and see to your wizard, I'll look after mine.'_

 _With Madam Bones on the scene things changed quickly; other students were moved along, the twins left telling her that they would talk later, and a three member medical transport team from Saint Mungo's arrived with a mixed patrol of three Aurors and three members of the Magical Law Enforcement Patrol._

 _The green robed medical team filed into the compartment; Amelia's team pushed everyone out except her and her cousin Adrian who had stepped forward and behind her, laying a comforting hand on her shoulder as the medical team began to work on Harry. ._

 _The Healer examining Harry's head swore under her breath and ran a different diagnostic. 'We need to move now people, I have an intracranial bleed here. We need to prep him for transport now! You need to move away, Miss.'_

 _Her heart froze in her chest, she stared at the healer, not able to move. Adrian pulled her up and away from Harry, allowing the medical team to scurry around him. She watched everything happening in front of her as if it were some sort of foggy nightmare. Words lost their meaning, she was bent forward on Adrian's lap, struggling to reach Harry when Sophie stepped in front of her and held her hands. By now the tears ran down her cheeks in thick droplets._

 _Sophie might as well have been speaking mermish for all that Daphne understood. Clarity came when Sophie flicked her between the eyes and spoke with a commanding voice, 'Daphne, stop this now, you can't help him, you're just making this harder on the medical team. Now pull yourself together. Harry will be alright, they just need to get him to Saint Mungo's as soon as they can … okay?'_

 _Daphne hiccoughed and nodded mutely, her eyes still glued to the very still form of her boyfriend who was now strapped down on the floating stretcher that one of the medical team had pulled from a bag._

\- APOGP -

She reached a hand up and cupped Harry's face, stroking her fingers down to his jawline. There was no evidence of the break any more of course, his treatment at Saint Mungo's had seen to that. She recalled as they loaded him on a magical stretcher, the tethers would suppress most of the magical impact of transport to the hospital allowing them to easily and safely transport him.

She had only had time for a quick kiss to his forehead before he was gone. She had tried to convince them to take her with them, but it was futile, and she found herself once more being held back by a firm yet gentle AV. As soon as they were off the train they popped away and she would have collapsed if Adrian hadn't been holding her up.

The last thing she remembered clearly was seeing Ron Weasley being taken from the train by two of the Law Enforcement Squad members before they too popped away. After that it was like trying to remember what a view looked like on a foggy day, she had almost no recollection of the train starting up again, or the rest of the journey to Hogwarts. In fact, she remembered only hazy little flickers until she woke up in a bed under Madam Pomfrey's supervision. She had been placed in the same bed that Harry had carried her to that fateful night.

It had taken a Calming Draught to get her to listen to Madam Pomfrey. Daphne wasn't in a mood for listening and was trying to get up so that she could go and find out what had happened to Harry when Madam Pomfrey all but force feed her the potion.

Four days, that was how long she had to wait to see him! He was mostly fine when he returned to school, a little lethargic but that was from the final potion of twenty he had received during his Saint Mungo's stay. They told him the lethargy would were off by the weekend, but it seemed to her he was doing fine already by Friday night.

The Weasley twins, with a downcast Ginny in tow, had been among the first people who had found Harry upon his return and had apologised profusely on behalf of their family, and then as almost blubbering messes thanked him for not pressing charges against their dangerously stupid younger brother.

Daphne hadn't been happy with Harry about that particular point, but as Harry had pointed out, by pressing charges, even if it was warranted, it would tear the Weasley family apart. He still had at least two good friends in the twins and potentially a third in Ginny, whom he didn't want to hurt like that, not to mention Bill who along with Cedric he thought of as an older brother. They had argued for the very first time about this until she had conceded that yes, it was his choice, but she didn't like it one bit.

Harry had in typical fashion just waved the twin's and Ginny's apology aside and asked how their mother was faring, concern etched on his face. Even if he wasn't at all as close to the Weasley Matriarch as he once was, he still held some affection for her in his overly large heart.

The long story short according to the twins was that she wasn't doing at all well. Charlie had already decided to quit his job and was moving back to England to be closer to the family. Bill was going to take a month long sabbatical from Gringotts, and they were going to try and get Molly back on her feet. They had also, after several discussions with the twins, acknowledged that it was currently the calm before the storm and they wanted the family to be ready for whatever was coming.

They also informed them that Ron wouldn't be returning to Hogwarts, either. He had been expelled against Dumbledore's wishes. For once, McGonagall had put her foot down and informed the board of governors of the incident. Their vote had been unanimous. Bill had managed to cobble enough money together to enrol him in the closest regional magical hub school Saint Petroc.

Saint Petroc's was the hub school for those who couldn't afford the cost of tuition or didn't receive one of the assistance scholarship to attend Hogwarts in the Cornwall, Devonshire, Somerset, Dorset, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire districts. It was more commonly known as the Southie School. It was a day school; Ron would Floo to and from it every day, and it was something that Harry hadn't even known existed.

At the end of the conversation Harry had cocked his head, and after several long moments of consideration basically ordered the twins to tell Bill and Charlie that he wanted to see them as soon as possible.

The twins had exchanged a look and asked exactly what Harry was planning on doing?

Harry's enigmatic answer of "help" was met with blank stares. The twins who trusted Harry implicitly, exchanged a look, nodded once to each other and then nodded to Harry, and they walked away with Ginny, who hadn't said a word.

Harry had helped, alright. He had forced a five thousand galleon, interest free loan on the two older brothers, refusing to take no for an answer. It was a fait accompli before the two oldest Weasley brothers had turned up. Harry had written to Gringotts and had the Potter account manager set up a separate vault with two keys, one for each brother. He'd told his account manager that he was to aggressively insist that the money could not be returned to him for at least a five year period and that then and only then loan repayments could be discussed.

When Bill and Charlie hurried to Hogwarts and attempted to remonstrate with him, Harry had thrown a very broom shaped package at Charlie and said he hoped the rumours were true. This had confused the hell out of the two Weasley brothers right up until Charlie had unwrapped the brand new Nimbus 2001. A grin spread over her face as she remembered the look on Charlie's face as he had simultaneously tried not to admire the broom and give it back to Harry.

\- APOGP -

 _'Harry, I can't accept this, mate,' Charlie said with reverence in his voice as his fingers trailed over the black lacquer handle. He gave the broom another longing gaze, shook himself and tried to hand it back to Harry._

 _Harry stood there with his arms crossed and refused to take hold of the broom, causing Charlie to frown. 'Well, you're going to have to. I checked with the twins; they said your current broom had more burnt and broken bristles than a Hippogriff had feathers, and they aren't really conducive to controlled or fast flying.'_

 _'And why in the name of Merlin's saggy underpants would I need to fly fast?' Charlie's voice matched the baffled look on his face._

 _Harry smiled enigmatically at him, pulled a letter from his robe pocket and held it out to a still confused Charlie._

 _'You'd better hand that to your brother to hold for a moment.' Harry nodded at the broom and then to an equally perplexed Bill._

 _Charlie's confused frown deepened, but he thrust the broom into Bill's arms and reluctantly pulled the letter from Harry fingers, who continued to smirk at the two redheads. With a scowl Charlie opened the unsealed letter and started to read. His eyebrows rose and almost disappeared into his hairline the further he read into the letter._

 _Bill, giving up any pretence of patience, stepped behind his brother and read over his shoulder. When he came to the end, Bill's mouth formed a silent "oh", and his eyes had become wide. He looked at Harry. 'How is this possible, the trading season has been closed for at least three weeks?'_

 _'It was all fairly simple, really, the only person who I know who plays on a professional Quidditch team is my former captain Oliver Wood.'_

 _Daphne now twigged as to what her boyfriend had managed to get done in the three days of furious letter writing that had Dobby popping all over the UK. She had tried to wheedle out of him what he was up to, but to no avail, only Scarlett and Hermione had been allowed to know what he was up to, and neither of them were talking either._

 _'I remember him saying that "Charlie Weasley was good enough to play for England," and that he couldn't believe that you'd gone off wrangle dragons or something like that.' He turned his attention to Bill. 'You're right, however, what I asked Oliver was if there was a chance that someone could train with the team until the next transfer window so that they could attend the open tryouts. Oliver ran it past the reserve coach, and they okayed it before they asked who it was, as apparently they have at least six to ten other hopefuls who do the same thing every year.'_

 _He flicked his head in Charlie's direction. 'When I mentioned Charlie's name that's what they sent back. It appears Oliver wasn't the only person impressed with Charlie's skill set when he was at Hogwarts. Concurrently it appears fortuitously for Charlie that their third string seeker had a massive accident a week ago and will be out for at least four to five months, and their current reserve seeker is nearing retirement and thinking about hanging up her broom at the end of the season. They were putting together a roster of potential injury replacement signings which is apparently allowed under the rules when my letter arrived back with Charlie's name on it.'_

 _'Let me get this straight, you've not only got me a try-out at Puddlemere United, you've given me one of the best brooms on the market for that tryout so I can practice, but if that try-out goes well I'll end up being signed to a two year contract with the option of a third?' Charlie asked, disbelief awash in his voice._

 _'Yep, that about sums it up,' said a smug Harry. The next moment he was all business again. 'That contract has been looked over by Scarlett and Hermione, both who want to go into Law. Scarlett actually wants to get into contract Law and be a sports agent. They may be young, but they are bloody scarily smart. I'm sure they won't mind if you get someone else to look it over if it will give you peace of mind. Make no mistake, Charlie, this is only a foot in the door, you need to kick it down and grab it with both hands. They understand that your skills maybe a little rusty and you may need a little time to get back up to speed so to speak, but this will be whatever you make out of it.'_

 _Whilst they had kept their attention on them, the two witches in question had proceeded to walk up behind the two Weasley men. 'They are also right behind you so they can take you through the in's and out's of what Puddlemere have offered you across the first two years, and for the potential third year as well, as the provision for living at home whilst you guys get your mum back on her feet.'_

 _Charlie turned, said a quick 'Hi,' to the girls and then proceeded to try and crush the life out of Harry as tears ran down his face. 'Thank you Harry, I promise I won't let you down.'_

\- APOGP -

Charlie was as good as his word and let no one down, with his efforts easily securing the contract that had been mooted, further securing the Weasley Family future. Fred and George had kept them posted regarding all things Puddlemere and Weasley.

It wasn't until they were on the Hogwarts Express for the final time that year that they heard the news that had been kept very quiet up until that point, that both Octavian and Sara had been part of the response group that arrived once the alarm had been raised. Both had suffered minor injuries but had been fit for normal duties the next day. The disturbing thing as far as they had been concerned was the distinct lack of any noticeable Death Eater activity since.

There had been some isolated murders of somewhat minor public officials, and multiple small raids that could be attributed to the Voldemort's lackeys, but there had been no real activity they could discern. It wouldn't be until much later in their holidays that the Second Blood war would kick off in a big way.

She allowed her fingers to trace down Harry's side, feeling down to his floating ribs on his right hand side, the sole remaining reminder of that night evident to her touch. A puckered scar the size of a young girl's palm, rough in places, yet with a smoothness that felt waxy and wrong. The wound was from the last spell cast by a Death Eater that frightening night.

 _\- APOGP -_

 _Daphne turned her head slightly from where it lay on Harry's shoulder when the door opened. Amelia Bones strode into the 2nd floor parlour that the boys were going to be bunking in for the night and looked pointedly at her watch. 'Come on, girls, out. Kiss your boyfriends good night, it's late and you have to get up reasonably early to go to Megan's for her birthday tomorrow.'_

 _There was a distinct lack of movement. A wicked smile crossed Amelia Bone's face, and Daphne found herself slightly worried. 'Ladies, I will give you all till the count of ten, then I'll start sending stinging hexes to places no-one in here wants a stinging hex. I'll be starting with you Susan, now mo-' her voice broke off; she stiffened and turned a piercing gaze towards the window and the after midnight darkness. Those around her the room froze._

 _The older woman rushed to the window, barking out an order to her niece. 'Susan, extinguish the lights.'_

 _Susan hesitated a moment and stepped towards her aunt instead._

 _'Now Susan!' Amelia snapped._

 _Susan bolted to the doorway and flicked the runic switch on the wall, cutting the lights in the room and plunging it into darkness, apart from the moonlight streaming in from the almost full moon. Daphne and several others stepped up to the window beside the Head of the DMLE. Harry came to a halt just behind Daphne and placed a calm hand on her shoulder. She reached up and covered it with her own._

 _In the distance flickered the tell-tale eerie fireworks of spell fire._

 _'Aunty, what is it?' Susan asked in a trembling voice, though she did her best to keep it under control, as she turned back from the doorway and joined them at the window._

 _'Someone is trying to breakdown the outerwards,' Amelia answered in a stone cold voice. 'Go to the Floo and call the Aurors. Susan scurried away with someone - probably Oliver - hot on her heels._

 _Amelia turned to face the rest of the TGS. 'Have you all got your wands?' Everyone nodded yes. It was a rhetorical question, all of them had been gifted quick release holsters for Yule from Susan and Amelia. Whilst they weren't as good as the Hit Wizard holster that Harry wore as a present from her family they allowed them all to keep their wands on them at all times except for when they were in the bath, shower or were swimming._

 _'Aunty,' yelled a now clearly frightened Susan as she rushed back in the room, 'The Floo is out.'_

 _Nervous whispers broke out among them. Amelia swore under her breath. Harry's shrill whistle close to her ear made Daphne jump, but she guessed she could forgive him under the current circumstances. She didn't know how, but it seemed like he was the calm in the centre of the storm that was about to start raging around them._

 _'Amelia, what's the safest room on the ground floor?' Harry asked as soon as everyone had quieted down._

 _Amelia gave Harry a nod. 'Good thinking.' She turned to Susan. 'Right, I want you all to follow Susan and move down into the old larder, once you're in there start fire proofing and strengthening the ceilings and walls.'_

 _Most of the others started to follow Susan, but Harry, Katie, AV, Vicky, Tamsin, Kenneth and Cedric hung back to talk to Madam Bones. When the last of her friends disappear out the door Daphne took a step towards the remaining group, a frown on her face._

 _'You all need to go downstairs and into the larder. That's an order, I cannot …' Amelia frowned at Harry and the others._

 _Harry politely, but firmly held up a hand and cut her off. 'If you think we're leaving you to fight off god only knows how many Death Eaters on your own, Madam Bones, you're clearly out of your mind. Now, where are the other parents? Where is Mrs Diggory and Mr Turpin?'_

 _Amelia fixed Harry with a look that would have cowed almost anyone else in the magical world, raised an eyebrow and gave a small shake of her head. 'They are in the downstairs Parlour, I left them there when I came to usher the girls off to bed.'_

 _'Are either of them fighters and do you have another way out of here apart from Susan's emergency portkey?'_

 _'No and no,' answered Amelia, ignoring the fact that Harry had taken charge, much to Daphne's astonishment. 'Besides, most likely they have anti-portkey jinxes already in place.'_

 _'What about the elves?' Vicky asked. 'Could they carry people out, or at least take a message to the Aurors or someone?'_

 _Amelia gave Vicky a calculating look and called out for the Bones Family house elves, Mifty and Larco, who arrived moments later with twin pops._

 _'Mistress?' asked the two somewhat frightened elves in unison._

 _'Can you apparate someone outside the wards?' Amelia asked calmly as she crouched down in front of her elves. Both elves screwed their faces up in concentration for a moment, then shook their heads morosely. 'It's okay, don't worry about it. How about this, can you take a message to the DMLE or someone outside the wards?'_

 _Again both elves concentrated for a moment. Finally Larco nodded his head. 'It could be done Mistress, but Larco is not knowing if he can pop back in once he is gone.'_

 _Amelia hesitated, a frown on her face, then moved to a side table and summoned a piece of parchment and a_ _Self-Inking-Quill. She tore the parchment in half with a quick turn of her hands, scribbled two notes and handed both to Larco. 'Take this note to Master Auror Shacklebolt, he should be in the Auror Bullpen. The other take to Lord Black, tell him I said he needs to get to the DMLE ASAP, no excuses, and come back when you can.'_

 _Larco nodded, took the two notes and popped away with a 'Yes Mistress.'_

 _Amelia turned her attention back to Harry. 'Right, now Harry, as much as I appreciate your leadership of the group my niece has tied herself to, this is my house and my rules, got it?' She waited until a slightly sheepish Harry nodded his understanding. 'Good! Okay Mifty, I want you to go to where the wards are currently under attack and find out how many attackers are out there. I want you to do this unseen and you come back right after, okay?'_

 _The little elf nodded once and popped away._

 _Amelia started towards the door. 'Follow me, we'll go collect Abigail and Jasper and wait for Mifty to get back; she shouldn't be too long. The outerwards are still holding. Even if those masked bastards collapse them in the next couple of minutes, they will still have to get past the innerwards, which, although stronger, are far closer to the house than I would like. However, going by the amount of power they are pouring into their current efforts that will probably only buy us another ten or so minutes, but hopefully long enough for a squad of Aurors to get here.'_

 _Daphne hurried to take Harry's hand, and they followed the others downstairs. Amelia informed the other parents on the way, and together they all walked to the larder. 'Okay listen up, all of you, we don't have much time. The Aurors are on the way; however, I cannot guarantee they'll arrive in time. I am therefore going to ask you to bar and ward the door as best you can, I will disillusion it from the outside.'_

 _'Aunty?' Susan piped up, a tear escaping one of her eyes and tracking its way down her cheek._

 _'I'll be fine, Susie. This lot behind me have decided they aren't going to allow me to wander off on my own. Now, we need to get going, once we leave no-one exits this room for at least two hours unless we come and get you. If we don't identify ourselves by saying …'_

 _She stopped and thought furiously for a moment. 'The dark hunters are down,' Vicky threw in._

 _Amelia flashed Vicky a grin and nodded. 'That will do nicely.' She leaned forward and kissed her niece on the forehead. 'We will be careful as we can. Stay here and keep the rest of our guests safe. We need to get going._

 _'Abigail and Jasper I leave them in your capable hands. Should the worst happen, listen to Susan, she knows every way in and out of this property, most of which can only be used by non-family members if all the wards are down.'_

 _Susan sniffed and hugged her aunt as if she didn't want to let her go, released her and offered a 'Good luck' to them all._

 _Just as Madam Bones had finished disillusioning the door, Mifty popped back in._

 _'There be twelve of the dark one's, Mistress.'_

 _'Thank you. Mifty. Now I want you to start putting the house on lockdown. Should any of the Dark ones try and enter our house you have my permission to stop them with extreme prejudice.'_

 _The little elf's sombre expression morphed into a malicious grin at her last words. 'Mifty be not letting you down Mistress.' With that she popped away._

 _Daphne gave Amelia with a wide-eyed look. The older woman smirked in return. 'Never mess with a Bones' house elf's house, especially if they have been let off the leash.' The next few minutes were a blur as Madam Bones outlined what they were going to do. All of a sudden she stiffened._

 _'Okay, we are out of time. Remember, I want no heroics, we just need to defend the House until the Aurors arrive, has everyone got that?'_

 _Everyone nodded. 'Okay, let's move to our positions, remember, watch each other's backs and make every shot count. They came here thinking they would only have to deal with me and Susan, let's show them the error of their ways, but make sure you all come out of this alive. No Stunners, Blasting Hexes, Cutting Curses. Anything that will take them down is the order of the day!'_

 _Her kiss with Harry contained all her love and fear that this would be the last time that they kissed. Far too soon he was turned away and jogged off with Tamsin and Katie, whilst Cedric, Vicky and AV moved off in another direction. Daphne followed Madam Bones, along with Kenneth, until they heard a muffled explosion which had Madam Bones swaying on the spot for a moment._

 _'Fuck, I think they just used a runic bomb to bring down the innerwards.' Kenneth growled, looking out the window that looked over the backyard. Daphne stepped beside him. The tell-tale sign of raw magic fizzled down out of the sky, and a pillar of steam or smoke rose some forty metres away, like the sick imitation of the columns that adorned the entrance of the Bones Manor._

 _Amelia soon recovered and reached for the door to the back garden. 'We need to get going, we'll only have moments now.'_

 _They rushed into the back garden, moving quickly to the large raised garden beds that were dotted around Bones Manor, or the Ossuary, as it was more formally known. While they were on their way, shadows emerged from the two smaller wings of the house, moving stealthily into position and using what cover there was to remain unseen. A feral grin appeared on Daphne's face. That Death Eater scum won't know what hit them when the crossfire began._

 _It was Madam Bones, Kenneth's and her role to draw the attackers in as though they were the only three defenders for the house. Once the Death Eaters passed the other two positions, the others were to rain down as many spells as they could manage. This would hopefully break the attack before it got started._

 _The best laid schemes o' Mice an' Men,  
Gang aft agley.  
An' lea'e us nought but grief an' pain,  
For promis'd joy!_

 _For strange, unbidden reasons the words of her favourite Scottish poet floated through her mind as twelve distinct shapes made their way boldly across the large expanses of tiered lawns that stretched away from the formal gardens where they hid._

 _Her pulse raced and she gripped her wand tighter in her hand. Amelia turned her face to her own and nodded once before she stood up and called loud, 'Who goes there?'_

 _The twelve silhouettes froze, then one of them called out, 'Well, well, well, lookie what we have here boys, a very foolish Auror. I haven't played with one of those since the Prewett boys.'_

 _'Dolohov.' Amelia's voice was the low growl of a very angry dog._

 _'Aww, it's so nice to be recognised. 'Dolohov couldn't resist mocking her as he and the rest of his men continued to edge forward. 'Well, as much as I would love to stand here and chat all night, I really can't, it's such a pity it has to end so soon, things to do and all that, you understand.' A bolt of purple light flashed from his wand and raced towards Amelia, who calmly swatted it away._

 _That was the signal for all hell to break loose. Daphne cast a bludgeoning hex over the flower bed, which decapitated the flowers on the way through. A flash of sickly yellow light slipped past her as she pirouetted out of its path and she adjusted her aim at the new Death Eater who had fired upon her. She could hear several screams of pain, but had no idea who was responsible for them. She ducked and moved again in the same direction, foolishly pushing herself out and past the protection of the garden bed._

 _She was about to move back to cover whilst sending a cutting curse into a small group of Death Eaters when they disappeared in a deafening boom of dirt and debris. Pieces of earth and other things she didn't want to think about rained down around her while she seemed to be frozen to the spot._

 _She blinked and shook her head, hoping to clear away the shock of what had just happened, when a flash of red light hit her in the middle of her chest and she fell to the ground, screaming in agony._

 _She convulsed on the ground, screams echoing in her head as every sinew and fibre in her body felt like it had been lit on fire. She screamed some more, musty flavour of freshly turned earth on her tongue and the smell what must have been freshly cut grass in her nostrils. There was a movement in the corner of her eye. Harry stood up, left the cover he had been behind and strode purposefully in her direction, his wand flashing, face furious and his eyes deadly._

 _Oh no, how could he make himself such a target? She opened her mouth to scream at him not to be such a chivalrous fool, but no sound came out._

 _The pain stopped, but still she convulsed on the ground. A blue spell impacted Harry's right side which caused a fountain of something to explode out behind him. He didn't cry out, he even showed no sign of pain, he just kept walking forward towards her like an inexorable force, wand still moving and conducting a symphony of light. Tamsin stepped up beside him, her wand dancing and her body moving with a grace and purposefulness that had an eerie beauty. Even as she lay on the grass in pain she admired the courageous girl. Katie rushed past them both, dropped to her knees in front of Daphne, blocking her view. The next moment she pulled her behind the garden bed and covered her with her own body._

 _She blinked trying to clear her vision which had grown foggy for some reason and heard Amelia's distant call of "cease fire." Katie crying as she shifted behind her to cradle her aching body against hers. Her friend's slightly shaky hand stroked her sweaty forehead, whilst repeated again and again like a mantra, that it was over and she was going to be okay. Her vision started contracting at the edges and darkness claimed her._


End file.
